Southern Exposure March

SOUTHERN EXPOSURE SOUTHERN EXPOSURE online publication of seppa

MARCH 2010

John Woodward Colorspace Wars

Victoria Kelly

It’s Bokeh Baby

Suzette Allen Text on a Path

cover art “Ask Alice”

Lissa Hatcher

from the editor Yesterday, I spent several hours digging out of a January snowstorm. Today, sadly, I can feel just about every muscle in my body. Am I really that out of shape? I’m going to say no and chalk it up to a different type of “work out” than my body is accustomed.

Do I like to see snow? Of course. I remember my childhood. In Charlotte, we rarely got snow. In the rare event that enough fell, my brothers and I would escape the house and cabin fever and venture out to find the best hills for sledding. It always amazed me to see all of the neighbors out, together, enjoying fun, friendship and freezing temperatures. That being said, the time has come to focus our attention to spring.

March always welcomes warmer temperatures, longer days, the first lawn mowing and a busier time in most studios. We have come through several conventions and developed all of our marketing strategies for the year and believe it or not, the telephone is ringing.

If you have not gotten your marketing goals and plans together for 2010, it’s not too late. As you read through the March issue of Southern Exposure, I hope you will gain inspiration for new ideas and concepts for your studio as well as educational information, helping to make your images and business even better. There is much to read and learn.

Enjoy!

Doug Peninger

Editor SEPPA 1st Vice-President ncdoug01@triadbiz.rr.com

the Pages SOUTHERN EXPOSURE

march 2010

Learn

6

John Woodward

9

Kevin Newsome

Colorspace Wars

Camera Room

12 18 23 26 28 30 32 36

Attend

2

Cheri MacCallum

Painting a Soft Floral: Part Two

Victoria Kelly

It’s Bokeh Baby!

Janel Pahl

Receiving The Gift: Part Three

Janet Boschker

Maximizing the Sale

Rick Gibbons

Folks: Warren Motts

Mary Fisk-Taylor

Payment Plans

Jamie Hayes

Bridal Magazine Covers

Suzette Allen

Text on a Path

SEPPA 2011

16

Georgia Convention

25

East CoAst School

34

Florida School

38

PPNC Convention

“Purple grapes”

by Jamie Hayes

Shop 1

Showcase

9

academy

20

White House Custom Color

22

Pro Photo Imaging

39

Miller’s

42

CCI Lab

eb

bog

Board of Governors

Executive Board

Chairman of the Board Kevin Newsome kevin@newsomesstudio.com Mary Alice Ross maryaliceross@gmail.com

President 1st Vice-President

Doug Peninger ncdoug01@triadbiz.rr.com

2nd Vice-President George Singleton george.singleton6@verizon.net

Delaware District of Columbia Florida

Secretary/Treasurer Anthony Rumley anthony@anthonyrumley.com

Georgia

Print Exhibition Chair Randy McNeilly

randy@mcneillyphotography.com

Executive Director Thomas McCollum seppa@bellsouth.net

Maryland

Southern Exposure Southern Exposure magazine is an online publication of SEPPA and is published monthly.

*** Peggy Parkinson Joe Tessmer ***Cherilyn Nocera Terri Crownover ***LaRita Hulsey Sherri Noftsinger ***John Stein David Corry

Mississippi/Alabama

***Gill Brady Mary Lee Blakenship

Editor Doug Peninger NCDOUG01@triadbiz.rr.com 336-883-7104

North Carolina

***Rex Truell Janet Boschker

Ad Sales & Business Manager Thomas McCollum seppa@bellsouth.net 888-272=3711

South Carolina

***Wilber Jeffcoat Jimmy Wood

Deadlines Article & Ad Submission 5th of each month Proofs 20th of each month On-Line Publication 1st of each month SEPPA 2712 Marcia Drive Lawrenceville, GA 30044 888-272-3711 www.4seppa.com

4

Acceptance of advertising does not carry with it endorsement by the publisher. Opinions expressed by Southern Exposure or any of its authors does not neccesarily reflect the positions of the Southeastern Professional Photographers Association.

Tennessee

***Kendall Mathes Jan Wilson

Virginia

Robert Holman ***state presidents representative

As your state president and SEPPA representative changes, please inform Tom McCollum, so we may update our records.

SEPPA state links

Additional information of state events within the SEPPA District can be found using the state links below. Please view their websites by clicking on the web address and you will be re-directed.

DELAWARE

mississippi/alabama

www.delawarephotographers.com

www.ppma.net

District of Columbia www.ppsgw.org

Florida www.fpponline.org

north carolina www.ppofnc.com

south carolina www.ppofsc.com

georgia

tennessee

www.gppa.com

www.tnppa.com

Maryland

virginia

www.marylandppa.com

www.vppa.org

5

John Woodward

COLORSPACE wars WARS colorspace Last time we talked about the concept of “neutraling” our cameras and monitors so the resulting prints delivered to our clients would match, as close as physically possible at least, what we saw through our viewfinders and on our monitors. We discussed briefly the physiology of our eyes, especially in low light levels and how our brain makes automatic adjustments without telling us. Those memory colors of white, sky blue, grass green, etc are imprinted in our brain. We see them as white, blue and green even if the ambient light is really shifting them. The problem is our camera sensors see them exactly as reflected.

Unless we neutral our camera’s software, we will capture those color shifts resulting in problems later in processing To complicate matters even more, color space enters the picture (sorry, I couldn’t resist that one) and makes every effort to trip us up on our path from capture to print. Currently there are three color spaces in common use: sRGB, AdobeRGB and ProPhoto RGB, none of which match exactly the visible color that the human eye can actually perceive.

Color Spectrum

So which do we use? Good question, but only one answer that will insure success….sRGB. Before you bombard me with emails ranting about the limits of sRGB, let me agree with you. However, let me give you an analogy. Imagine you go to your local electronics store to purchase a new audio system. You are an audiophile to the nth degree and can discern the out-of-tune E string on Eric Clapton’s guitar every time he plays Tears in Heaven. Only the finest receiver, amp and processors will do. We are hoping for the biggest and best sound possible, comparable to capturing ProPhoto RGB or AdobeRGB, much bigger and more complete representations of the visible color spectrum. But here’s where technology let’s us down. After we go home and wire-up all that state of the art audio equipment, we run back to the big box store and grab the cheapest speakers we can because we spent all our money on the electronics.

Big mistake. No matter how much sound you are sending to those speakers they will never reproduce it accurately and completely.

Our journey from capture with the newest camera and best software will cause us frustration and pain if we cannot output what we visualize, live or on our monitors. EIZO monitors have the availability of reproducing ProPhoto RGB so we are good so far. And if we are printing to inkjet printers exclusively, we can come very close to AdobeRGB. The danger in using a larger color space than you can print is in expecting (or your clients expecting) colors your camera can capture and your monitor can reproduce, but you cannot print. (see figures on next page) This is not a new phenomenon because a traditional color print would never exactly reproduce the image in a well-exposed negative. The easiest and safest way to insure your success is to use sRGB throughout the process. And even then there are pitfalls. Refer to the figures shown: sRGB of your camera is a variable of your sensor and your camera’s processing software. The sRGB space of your monitor is something close, but not exact. Neither of those match up with inkjet or labs prints, but at least you are in the same visual range and not out in the twilight zone somewhere.

Bottom line? Neutral your camera as illustrated in last month’s article, calibrate your monitor and use sRGB throughtout and you will insure success.

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Photo 2 Photo 3 I love to use accent light to add depth and dimension to many of the images I create so why not apply the same technique to this image. I set up a 14x18 Larson Soff Box on my Profoto Compact 600 strobe placed to the left and slightly behind the chocolate fountains to add specular highlights and separate the two fountains from each other while lighting the container holding the pretzels. (Photo 4).

John Woodward has graciously given permission to the editor of Southern Exposure to publish portions of his Mastering the Light teaching DVD. This and other articles are re-printed with permission from the author.

contact CONTACT

You may contact John Woodward at: woodward2@aol.com or become his friend on Facebook

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Mary Alice Ross, SEPPA President

PRESIDENT president from the

As we enter into the year 2010 I am sure that your business is making many new and exciting changes and so is SEPPA! We are very excited as we move forward with many new benefits for you, the members. The entire SEPPA Board has many new ideas and plans for the upcoming years.

Our 2011 Convention that will be held in Athens, GA is one that you will need to be making plans to attend.

Doug Peninger, 2011 Convention Chair, has a great line up of speakers as well as many fun activities and parties that you will not want to miss.

Our 2010 SEPPA Print Judging is approaching quickly and online registration will be opening very soon. You will want to get your print case entries in so you can start working on your NEW SEPPA Degree. More information will soon be available on the SEPPA Degree as well as online REGISTRATION. You will need to make sure that you are checking your email for this awesome and educational Publication as well as any upcoming events that may be in your area!

We have a new and improved website that Tom has diligently worked on and should you have any information or find any corrections be sure to email him with that information. Email is the best way to contact Tom with any change that needs to be made.

Should you ever need anything from me, please do not hesitate to call or email me with any concerns or praises. This Association is about the members and I, as well as the rest of the SEPPA Board, are here and we care what you, our valued SEPPA members, are looking for in an organization.

Best wishes for a happy, healthy and successful New Year.

Knowledge is Power, Mary Alice Ross SEPPA President

8

Kevin Newsome

a

Few Moments with…

Major news networks and magazines all have editorial features. CBS has Andy Rooney. Sure, he has his opinions, just like any of us. SEPPA is lucky to have our very own Kevin Newsome. Kevin is featured each month as he gives us his latest rant. Some things may hit home, some may be surprisingly poignant. When it’s all said and done, it’s just Kevin’s opinion and he thought he should share it. We, at Southern Exposure, hope you will enjoy this month’s installment of “A Few Moments With...”. This month, “The Value of A Camera Room.”

(Click on the title, “The Value of A Camera Room”, and you will be linked to the video.)

A word to the faint of heart, fasten your seatbelts!

TheVALUE ValueOF of A a CAMERA Camera Room THE ROOM

Floral floral

Cheri MacCallum

a soft

painting

Part Two: Time to Paint

In last month’s issue we began the image enhancement of Drew’s image of the water lily in Photoshop. In this issue we will be painting this image with a softer technique than the last painting we did of the gentleman. The use of mediums can greatly effect the feeling of the finished painting. I will be using oil pastel/chunky oil pastel 10. In the brush drop downs, Oil Pastel will be the brush category(left drop down) and chunky oil pastel 10 being the variant (right drop down).

We begin with the enhanced image from last month (image_01). I open the file into Corel Painter and immediately clone the image. But, with this painting the first clone that I do will be a “quick clone” which is a little different than just “clone”. The quick clone puts a piece of tracing paper at 50% opacity over the image. (image_02). Don’t forget we need to do the ctrl M to mount our image on the gray background to separate our images. Next I go to file/clone source to check that my clone source is set to “image_01”. I go and grab my brush, oil pastel/chunky oil pastel 10. While making sure I have the color wheel set to “clone” I have my brush set at 50% opacity and just begin painting over the whole image, basically wiping out any detail. (image_03). When I’m done with this phase, I will click ctrl T. This toggles OFF the tracing paper. Big surprise, it looks like a mess. Turning off the tracing paper also turned off any photographic image coming through the tracing paper so all you see is what you painted. (image_04).

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Image 01 Image 02

Image 04

I will now clone again, (just clone) and save as “paint_02”. I also need to make sure my clone source is set for “paint”.

The next step is to start bringing back just a little detail. (image_05). To do this I will change brush categories to Cloners (which is a set of brushes that automatically clone in different ways) I choose the variant soft cloner. This brush will just clone back the detail from the clone source, but not add any artistic stroke. Kind of like using the rubber stamp tool in Photoshop.

At this point we are ready to add color accents. We will be using the color wheel with the rubber stamp clicked off. You will know when this happens because the color wheel becomes vibrant. We will be picking colors from the wheel to add our accents. Here’s how the color wheel works: The outside ring is the hue or color. The triangle is value and saturation of that color. Up and down inside the triangle is the value of that color. Up being lighter, down being darker. From side to side in the triangle is saturation of the color. Left being less saturated and right being more.

Image 03

With varying brush sizes, I pick a few areas and pop the highlights and sparkle still using oil pastel/chunky oil pastel. (images _06 and _07). At this point I clone again and save as “paint_03”. I check to make sure my clone source is set for the “paint _02”.

Image 05

Image 06 Image 07

It’s time for blending. I like to use a few different blending brushes to add different textures. The first one I will use is blender/grainy blender. I keep the brush very small as it can get funky looking if it’s too big. (image_08).

Image 08

Cheri MacCallum is the owner of Art by Cheri where she specializes in the painting, fine art printing and finishing of commisioned portraits for professional photographers. Cheri is a regular speaker and workshop instructor on “Painting Portraits in a Digital World”

I go around the image and just break up some harsh edges left by the oil pastel brush and just soften them a bit. Next I will choose blender/just add water to blend more and in bigger areas and especially along the edges. This serves the same purpose as a vignette. (images, _09, _10, _11).

I could be done at this point but feel this image needs a little bit of a soft border. I clone again and save as “paint_04”. (image_ 12) making sure my clone source is set for “paint _03”. I choose airbrush/digital airbrush to lightly brush some white border onto the edges. I have a low opacity of around 5% because I don’t want stark white borders. Again, I clone the airbrushed image and save as “paint_05” making sure my clone source is set for “paint_4”.

More blending is needed with the blender/just add water. I have a large brush and softly blend the airbrushed areas with the rest of the painting. (image_13) We now have a finished soft painting! (image_14).

Thanks again to Drew for allowing me to use his image for our painting!

Image 12

Image 13

14

Image 09

Image 10

Image 11 Image 14

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Melanie Burney, assistant print salon chair

PrintCompetition Competition 101 Pr int 1 01 How to Register for 2010 SEPPA Affiliated Print Competition

All Rules are Online & Pre-Registration is Open Print Judging Dates are: April 9 & 10 It is that time and many of you have already found the online registration forms and have registered your cases but this is a reminder for the rest of you. Simply visit www.4seppa.com and click on the Print Competition link and you will see the registration.

The Deadline for Online Registration is April 1, 2010.

All cases registered after that date will incur a $50 late fee.

No cases will be accepted after April 6, 2010.

Three Canon “Par Excellence� Awards will be awarded again this year!

This Award will be given for Photographic Open, Commercial & Electronic Imaging. For More Information check the SEPPA website.

Numerous other Awards will also be given.

Remember the Buddy Stewart Scholarship is for a First Time Entrant that has the highest case average. You must enter 4 prints to be eligible.

Should you have any trouble or questions regarding the online registration please contact Melanie Burney at (912) 367-0369 or melburney@gmail.com. All other questions should be directed to Randy McNeilly at (704) 482-0011 or randy@mcneillyphotography.com.

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Victoria Kelly

BOKEH

It’s

BOKEH

How many lenses do you carry in your camera bag? Have you ever found yourself in the midst of changing lenses at a wedding, watching as a great series of images passed you by? Or, maybe you like the tilt-shift effect you can achieve by attaching a special optic to your camera...

Here, again, is a personal confession: I have one lens that I use 95% of the time. And when I want that beautiful, shallow depth of field I manipulate the image on my computer.

Yes, we’ve all seen the impact that shallow depth of field can create---the great sports image on the front of the section in the weekend paper, the nature image with detail in the sweet spot so precise it takes your breath away or the urban senior posed in a decidedly un-pretty alley with the background blurred perfectly.

This month we’re talking about bokeh, and, more specifically, the Bokeh plug-in from Alien Skin software. Bokeh is a realistic lens simulator that gives you the capability of altering the depth-of-field of an image after it’s been created. You can even use it to simulate the tilt-shift effect and vignetting that’s so popular right now.

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Baby

The idea behind Bokeh was pretty simple...photographers had been asking Alien Skin to make an accurate simulation of real lens blur for quite some time because, because they had discovered, the blur in Photoshop and other software just didn’t look anything like real bokeh.

The team at Alien Skin got to work, examining images made with high quality lenses. Two of the lenses known for their creamy bokeh are the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II and the MicroNikkor 105mm f/2.8. A year later, Bokeh can render out-offocus areas so well that you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between its results and expensive glass.

Bokeh provides the controls to accentuate images and focus your viewer’s attention anywhere you want. One of the most common uses is to make the background fade into the distance...like going from f/22 to f/2.8. The bonus is that YOU can choose which objects to blur. Pretty sweet, eh?

When you first launch Bokeh from inside Photoshop, it’s set to a series of defaults based on the image it sees. For a typical high school senior, I usually use the radial default. You’ll note that I can turn the circles however I wish. I can even make a selection using the lasso tool BEFORE launching to make my blur more precise.

You can also use the planar controls to blur a distracting background...a real positive for the sports photographer who needs to separate the player from all the “stuff” behind.

One of the most distinctive features of out-of-focus areas of a photograph created with a real lens are the highlights. You’ll remember from Photography 101 that these highlights take on the shape of the lens aperture. Normally, a wide open lens has a round aperture. When it’s stopped down, the highlights change their shape depending on the number of blades of the diaphragm. Bokeh gives you additional controls to manipulate the shape of the highlights from stars to hearts...AND adjust the creaminess!

Oh, remember the tilt-shift effect I mentioned earlier? Regardless of whether portraits or landscapes are your main thing, Bokeh gives you the same effect without having to worry about which optics to carry. This means you can focus on capturing the best image at the moment and make creative focus decisions during your post-production process.

You’ll want to visit the Alien Skin website at www.alienskin. com and download your very own trial version of Bokeh. If you get stuck, they even have a real live tech support person.

He’s also a professional photographer, by the way, so he really knows his stuff!

And, just in case you haven’t found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, there’s a discount code for 10% off any Alien Skin purchase through March 31st. Just use code SEP1003 when you checkout.

contact CONTACT

Victoria Kelly vkelly@victoriakellyphotography.com www.victoriakellyphotography.com 19

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Press Printed Cards

Press Printed Cards are available in 4x5.5, 5x5 and 5x7 sizes as folded and flat styles as well as 5x7 Wide Format, 5x5 Trifold and 4x5.5 Accordion. Cards come in quantities as low as 25, include envelopes, and are offered in five papers.

Press Printed Books WHCC Press Printed Books are unmatched in print quality, craftsmanship, and turnaround with most books shipping the next day! Books are available in nine sizes with eight cover options including a custom metallic photographic cover. Inside pages are printed on a magazine style text weight or lay flat hinged paper in standard or pearl.

White House Custom Colour is a full service, professional photographic lab and press printer. In addition to the showcased products, we offer a full line of products and services to make a positive impact on your goals for continued success in building your photographic business. For more information visit our website, www.whcc.com Visit pro.whcc.com/go/Start today to open your WHCC account.

Cover

Artist

This image was taken as a Bridal Portrait in Oklahoma City. When I was hired for the wedding I was so excited. I knew this wedding would be unique and the Bride would give me free reign to do whatever I wanted . I was right, she believed in me so much I felt a bit over whelmed. Even more over-whelmed when she announced to me her hair would be in a Bee-Hive and her dress would be TeaLength. I spent many sleepless nights trying to think of something interesting enough for this fearless bride. Then at 3:14 A.M I woke up, sat straight up in my bed and said “ALICE”. I leaned over to my night stand and began to sketch what I hoped would be a great Bridal...I just had to wait 6 hours to pitch the idea. Lucky for me, it all worked out. The men in the back ground were her best friends. I spent an hour making the foam-core cards, and ran around town the day of the shoot gathering props I felt would be in Alice’s world. There are a few things in this image that make me smile every time I see it. The checkered floor is from Versailles in Paris and the cat, a little kitten I always thought had the best smile. This image has helped me win many awards...Photographer of the Year and a Kodak Elite award just to name a few and is also featured in the PPA loan collection. It is and always will be one of my favorite pieces.

“Ask Alice”

Lissa Hatcher

Growing up around artistic people who could paint and draw, I was the odd one out. Which may be why I had every intention of becoming a music major.

Luckily photography found me.

Completely self taught, I have some how managed to find a way to express myself with photography in a way I never thought possible. I feel more like a painter that happens to own a camera. I can honestly call myself a baby in the field turning three this year. I have been blessed to win award after award in my short time, including “Hottest New Talent”(American Photo), Photographer of the Year for the state of Oklahoma two years in a row and have even been featured on Kodak.com. I now find myself living in Virginia and plan to continue my pursuit of surrealistic portraiture.

Note: Images chosen for the cover of Southern Exposure are first place or distinguished award winners from the annual affiliated judging.

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Janel Pahl

This is the third, of a series, from Janel Pahl, as she takes you on her life-long journey.

Janel will be the opening day speaker for the 2011 convention in Athens.

the

GIFT

Part Three of

Receiving the Gift With the birth of my third child, Casey, I knew that weddings were going to become a thing of the past.

My family was very important to me and being gone most every weekend was causing a hardship on me as well as them.

But how was I to change this business around so that I could do more portraits? The answer certainly was not within my very tiny little box that I had put myself into. The answer came when I heard about and joined Professional Photographers of Orange County.

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. I became instantly humbled, by the quality of work that I was exposed to. Attending a day long seminar solidified my humility. There were three speakers that day. The first was on “glamour” photography. I was ready to switch within the hour. “I can do this!” I kept saying to myself. The second program was on weddings, and I found myself saying “Great ideas, I can do this!” The third speaker changed my life forever. His name was David Peters. His images pulled me in a way that no others had and I found myself saying, “I will do this!” Without hesitation I signed up for his weeklong seminar after the program. Finally something felt right. I had a direction; to put beauty and emotion into my images.

After David’s class, I knew that I had a lot of work ahead of me. I felt like a beginner. It felt good to be starting on a new path. I was inspired, encouraged and motivated.

The very first thing that I did when I returned home was grab my two nieces and go outside into the fields (where I had been afraid to go because it was so much safer and controlled in the studio). What an exciting world I had just entered, the outdoors! I felt as if I was coming home. It felt right to be doing what I loved in a place that I was always most comfortable in. The smells, sounds and peace that the outdoors gives me, bring great inspiration. It is the place where I walk closest with God.

Knowing that I had so much more to learn about photography, I enrolled in Leon Kenamers class at West Coast School. I fell in love with that wonderful “southern” gentleman. His class, “Seeing the Light” was exactly that. We spent five days doing nothing but trying to see and re-create the light on each other.

“Where’s the directional light?” he kept drumming into our heads. Leon’s images were incredibly inspiring to me. Never had I seen such perfect light on faces. I am so honored to have been instructed by Leon Kennamer. I know that I will always have a piece of him within me forever, as with countless other photographers. He will be greatly missed. Today when I am out scouting locations I will say to myself “O.K. Leon where’s the directional light?” If it is not there, then I move on.

After Leon’s class I truly started a love affair with light and the passion has never left me. Light plays such an intricate role in my images today because of this obsession. Even when I am not out photographing, I still watch and study the light on faces, leaves, buildings. Soft, natural light is what I prefer.

It seems to reflect me and what I am all about, rather than hard edge light. Many photographers refer to the term “controlling” the light. For me, controlling seems so forceful, unnatural. I picture flash fill and numerous reflectors. Instead, I work with the light with understanding and acceptance. The light is my friend, my source for making beautiful images.

Editors Note: This concludes the first section of Janel’s thesis.

Next month we begin the portion Giving the Gift.

contact CONTACT Janel Pahl janelpahl@aol.com www.janelpahl.com

Janet Boschker

Working with

Children…

Maximizing the Sale

Ok. We have now completed the sessions, what have we offered our clients along the way?

Every session has been done with the philosophy of capturing each milestone development – flirting, sitting and crawling, and finally walking. If we have done our job we have also created a variety of angles and expressions so that there is a lot to choose from for the parents. What are we going to sell and how are we going to maximize the sale? Well, in my world, I want to sell something for the wall each time the mom comes in – so that all her friends will see it. At year’s end, there will be a beautiful framed grouping for friends to admire, and the referrals will come.

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First SessionSession First

The first session I typically offer the 9 opening frame that we are all familiar with – I use Magnolia Frame & Moulding based in Greenville, SC because I can let my client choose the moulding they want and feel like the product is customized for them. I limit that frame to baby sessions – to me, babies are small, therefore the images should be small and intimate. Just my personal take. Oh, and I want those baby pictures on the wall forever!

Third SessionSession Third

Second Session Session Second The second session is action packed with sitting, crawling, and pulling up so a series is the perfect way to go.

Standard triptychs are fine and the entry level product at my studio, but there is an upgrade to what I call the series – images custom cropped and printed on fiber paper as one piece.

The paper I am in love with for this product is the Moab Entrada – it is the closest thing I have found to the old Kodak Ecktalure G from the days of the darkroom . Entrada has a wonderful texture and weight that says “quality” and my clients are looking for something more than the norm.

The third session completes the collection with an 11x14 framed portrait that compliments the wall collection and caps the year off with the achievement of walking. At this point, there may be many images that you have taken over the span of a year that you can revisit and put together a small book as an upgrade to the triptych that was included in the original baby plan…. or the triptych in many cases are ordered in duplicate for gifts to the grandparents. The possibilities are endless and you are limited only by your imagination – as long as you plant the seeds along the way and make suggestions that make sense to your clients. They need our guidance as professionals and if we service them well, they will become our clients for life.

You may have noticed that all the images in previous articles are in black and white. This is something I have imposed on my clients. I love classic black and white baby images and feel very strongly that first year photography should have that unifying element. It will never go out of style, parents will never tire of looking at it (because it is all about their child), and it will never clash with the décor of the home. That is not to say that I won’t process an image in color, I will, but all images are shown in black and white during the sale.

Editor’s Note: To review the three sessions, in detail, please refer to the December 2009, January 2010 and February 2010 issues of Southern Exposure Magazine. Janet’s complete series of “Year in the Life of...” is featured.

contact CONTACT Janet Boschker www.northlightphotography.com jbnlight@aol.com

27

FOLKS folks

Rick Gibbons

Picture it…it…

Picture

Macon, GA, 2002 Warren Motts

General Paul W Tibbets, Jr. flew the Enola Gay and was a member of the Motts Military Museum Advisory Board until his death, in 1997, at the age of 92.

It was during a SEPPA affiliated print judging while I was a member of the executive committee. Working in the print room, I was introduced to a very distinguished looking gentleman with a handlebar mustache. He was there to oversee the competition for the Print Exhibition Committee (PEC).

He was the man with the seals. I also recognized him from a PPA council meeting when he presented an inspiring, patriotic story prior to leading the room in the Pledge of Allegiance.

That’s become an annual tradition for Council…something I look forward to each year. This year in Nashville, I asked him for permission to feature his lifelong passion (sorry Kevin) in Southern Exposure. That’s when he very humbly directed me to the website for Mott’s Military Museum. To say I was a little overwhelmed is quite an understatement.

Internationally known actor, businessman and Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger had his M47 Tank on display at the Motts Military Museum from 2000 to 2008

Motts Military Museum relies on income generated from memberships, gift shop sales, tours, unrestricted donations, bequests, and other private funding to fulfill our mission. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extend of the law. If you would like to be part of preserving America’s military past, sign up for membership today, or contact us to make a donation.

Your help makes honoring our veterans possible.

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My feeble attempt to describe Warren’s contribution to preserving the history of the country he so obviously loves could not possibly do him or the museum justice. I encourage you to take a few minutes to visit the website. Be forewarned, minutes will probably turn into hours as you read accounts of different eras in US history. For those who are close enough to visit the actual location, turn off your computer and get in your car….yes…right now.

New wing completed with artifacts being installed.

World History, US History, Southern history...those are all subjects for grade school, right? Not when it comes alive when listening to Warren Motts. Not while visiting the museum website, where you can begin with the American Revolution and progress to present day. Interesting, easily understood explanations of the political climate, the hows and whys along with artifacts to commemorate the actual human toll in man’s constant struggle for power and domination.

For more information www.mottsmilitarymuseum.org Warren Motts pictured with Arnold Schwarzenegger

contact CONTACT *all images furnished by Motts Military Museum

to contact Rick Gibbons with a nominee for features in your area rickg@triadbiz.rr.com or call 336-883-7104

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Mary Fisk-Taylor

Payment Planes Plans Payment My business partner, Jamie Hayes, and I own a small home based studio in Richmond, Virginia. We specialize in high-end wall portraits and have been in business for over fifteen years. As our business has grown over the years so has our market area and client list. However, with growth comes growing pains and several years ago I started to notice our average sales were down. After doing some research I realized that as our session numbers grew our sales average was decreasing.

I was very excited about our session numbers increasing. However, I did not want to lose our average sale numbers. As I looked through the last few appointments I realized that our “committed” client sessions were right on the money, literally. These “committed” clients are the ones that came to us through a referral or marketing display. However, many of our “uncommitted” client sessions had lower sales averages. These are the sessions that came to me through an auction gift certificate or partnership marketing campaign. So, these clients did not come to me because they already knew what they wanted, they came to us for something discounted or free.

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I realized that when I stopped and listened to many of these clients in the sales room they were not telling me they did not want more, they were telling me they could not buy more now.

So, I found that they would purchase less images, a smaller size portrait or a lesser finish. I knew that they were not getting what they wanted and I was certainly not getting the results that I wanted. So, I decided to offer these “uncommitted” clients a payment plan to assure the highest possible sales and hope this would make all of us happy. During the portrait consultation and the sales room process I will just casually mention that we have a great payment plan option if they are interested. If they decide to ask more about it or refer to it then I know that this is something I should discuss with them further. It is truly a win-win situation because I know that they are buying exactly what they want and I can offer them a way to get it and not over extend their current budget.

Payment plans have been a wonderful tool for our studio. It is a very satisfying feeling on the first of each month to process several thousand dollars in payments! This is an awesome feeling every month but especially in our slower months, like the first quarter of the year. I know that I have those payment plan dollars coming in to my studio that month and I can meet my general expenses.

The way the payment plan works is that clients agree to accept either a 6- or 12- month payment option. I take the initial payment that day and the client signs an agreement that allows me to process a credit card payment on the first business day of each month. I keep two credit card numbers on file to reduce the likelihood of a “credit declined” situation.

Our studio has found great success by offering this option.

Clients that have come to us with either a gift certificate or a different budget in mind suddenly find themselves in a position to spend dollars that they did not expect. The payment plan option eliminates the objection of a large, unexpected investment up front.

My clients really appreciate the option to spread their order payments out over an extended period of time. I decided to not charge my clients any additional charges for this service. I will tell you that most clients will ask about this in the sales room and when I explain that there are no extra fees they are pleasantly surprised. I also will deliver the portrait order when it is ready and we do not hold it until the payments are completed. I wanted to make this payment option as easy as possible for my clients.

These clients are the ones who would have probably placed a much smaller order if this was not made available to them.

My average portrait delivery time is 4 to 6 weeks. I have usually collected two or three payments before the client picks up their order. This, at a minimum, covers the cost of processing the portraits. I understand there is a certain amount of risk involved in payment plans, but, luckily, I have never experienced an issue with a client not completing their payment agreement. Having a secondary card on file is a must; it is your backup in case you encounter a payment problem.

One word of advice: When using a payment plan, it’s best to have no more than one-third of your clients making payments.

The cash flow on a monthly basis is great, but to assure financial stability, keep the majority of your clientele paying either all or half of their payments up front. This way your cash flow is consistent throughout the month.

contact CONTACT Mary Fisk Taylor mary@hayesandfisk.com 1-804-740-9307 Twitter @maryfisktaylor facebook - maryfisktaylor 31

Jamie Hayes

Shooting a

Bridal Magazine Cover idal Magazine Cov First let me apologize, this article was meant for January but I just didn’t get it together so here you go!

Since the first of the year is a busy Bridal Show time for all of us crazy wedding photographers I have selected this months image to be a shot that was used for a local Bridal Magazine. The publisher introduced a new size and format to their very popular yearly publication and wanted something different, a fashion style image for the cover. This is how I created it.

By the way, I highly recommend editing the images you give an art director so that you showcase not only what they want but also an image that represents your best efforts too. I did not edit the session. I simply gave the full session of images to the art director and she chose her favorite shot. Of course they needed it right away and I didn’t feel if was appropriate for me to change the selected image and stir up the pot so to speak. I wish the bride was facing into the main light. Other than that, not a bad shot.

I looked at several Bridal cover images at the book store to just familiarize myself with the shooting styles that were used by the “Big Guys”. I do this a lot! Why reinvent the wheel? Beside they have a much larger design budget than I do.

One thing that I noticed over and over again was that the main light was somewhat specular and full of contrast and all of the cover photographers used an under light, more like glamour head shot style than traditional behind the camera fill light position.

So I chose to use a Profoto Soft Light Reflector with a front honeycomb grid to constrict the Main light down to only the face and upper torso of the model. (Photo1)

This type of light, for a modifier, is used by most of the reality show fashion photographers, and yes I watch all of them! Hell, if it’s good enough for Nigel Barker (of America’s Next Top Model) it’s good enough for Jamie Hayes! This is really the old beauty dish for those of you in my age group and you know who you are!

I love this light modifier! I has a very distinct look and contrast style that I can’t seem to get with anything else. Thank you Profoto and the MAC Group. macgroupus.com/profoto.

For the fill light I placed a 3x4 Larson Soff box on the floor aimed up at a 45 degree angle to the model. This position of the fill light created the lower catch lights in the eyes, reduced a lot of texture to the skin and lightened the under chin area. Choosing a larger soft box for this light greatly diminished the contrast of the shadows created by the main light and softened the details of the skin.

It also accentuated the detail of the rouging of the gown. (sorry I forgot to shoot a reference photo for this light) Accent lights on both the right and left sides of the model were used to separate her from the background and create specular highlights running down the edge of her upper body. I used a Larson 9x24 Soff Strip with Flex Grids to her right (Egg crate looking fabric squares which narrow the beam of light even more than a regular strip light) and another 9x24 Larson Soff Strip to her left. I didn’t place anything on this strip accent light because this was on her shadow side and knowing that she would be moving and changing positions very fast I figured that if she would turn her head into the shadow side I would at least have a little more detail than with-out it. Thus the shot the art director selected! Thank goodness I did this! (see Photo 2 and Photo 2 other view)

Jamie Hayes is continued on page 35

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To add detail to her hair and the handmade tiara attached to the veil I placed an AC Slave II #11140 (themorriscompany. com) These are simply awesome! Small, simple and a great value! We use them all of the time for hair lights. (See Photo 3) I have included a head shot, un retouched, so that you can see the pattern of all of the lights ion her face. (photo 4) The neutral grey background allowed the retoucher to easily select and separate her from the background as well as change its color to complement the type color.

Most photographers submit a client image created at either the wedding or a bridal portrait session to be used for the front cover image for these type of publications. Next time challenge yourself to compete with the big guys and shoot a more high fashion style image. It’s really fun and pushes your creativity and talents to the limit.

Until next month Auf Wiedersehen!

Photo 1

Photo 4

Photo 3

Photo 2 Other View

Photo 2

EQ equipment

Camera: Canon 1DS Mark III Lens: Canon 28-300IS L Series 3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens set at 150mm Exposure: 1/125 sec @ f/11 100 ISO RAW File Capture and jpeg (for viewing purposes only) Light Meter: Sekonic L-358 Light Modifiers: Larson 3X4, 17x17 , 2-9x24 Larson Soff Strips one with Flex Grids Strobes: Profoto Compact 600r

contact CONTACT Hayes & Fisk: The Art of Photography (804) 740-9307 www.hayesandfisk.com jamie@hayesandfisk.com

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Suzette Allen

Text on a Path

It is easier than you think!

While this looks like it might be difficult, creating layouts with text on a path can actually be quite simple with a few tips. The key skills you need are: knowing how to work with the Marquee tool , the type tool and how to save a path… the rest is pretty easy!

For these simple layouts, I created a marquee selection and converted it into a path, allowing me to use the shape to align the text. Of course there are many other ways to create various paths with the pen tool, but we will save that for another article! For now, let’s make an easy selection, make it a path and add the text. (see photo 01) Photo 01

Step 1

With your retouched and flattened image--a copy, of course, crop your image to the dimension you wish. For this demo, I made it a wallet size ratio: (2.5x3.5 @ NO dpi). This creates a high res file, cropped to the correct ratio for wallets. (She is part of the Shine For Him Project and receives 24 free wallets to share along with her testimony!) (To read more or be a part of the SFH project, take a look at www.ShineForHim.com!). I used the grids (ctrl+”) [mac: cmd+”] to create a marquee in the center area and made a selection even from all the edges (grids on 1/4”). (see photo 02)

Step 2

Go to the path palette and the flyout to Create Work Path and turn the selection into a path. (see photo 03)

Photo 2

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Photo 3

Turn off the grids (ctrl+”) [mac: cmd+”] and you can see the path. (see photo 04)

Step 3

Choose the type tool and when you pass the cursor over the path, it will show a teeny diagonal line across the base of the cursor— that is the “type on a path” cursor! (see photo 05)

Click to create your insertion point and start typing. (see photo 06) Photo 05

Photo 04

NOTE: since it is tricky to edit text on a path, the easiest way to do this part is to make your normal text layer and get the size, color and font about where you want it, and use left alignment. Once you get it close, select it and copy. Commit that text by ctrl+enter [mac: cmd+enter], and then Turn off the visibility of that layer to get it out of the way. Then, when you make a new text insertion point with the “type on a path” cursor, you only need to paste! MUCH easier!!

Photo 06

Step 4

Photo 07

Modifying to fit nicely: This is the tricky part. If you need to move the insertion point to get the text to flow where you want, you will need to use the black arrow tool (pen selection tool) located under the pen tool. (see photo 07) Click on the small “X” at the insertion point and move it. This may drive you crazy because it also flips the type to the inside, moves the ending point and can be frustrating. Keep working with it until you get the effect you want. If you can’t get it to move where you want, it might be easier to back up in history and start a new insertion point and paste the text again!

Step 5

Next is getting the text to flow and fit over the corners or in the circle. (see photo 08) The easiest way to do that is to select the text by double-clicking on the T on the layer palette and using Kerning/tracking to compress or stretch out the letter spacing to fit! Here’s the fast way: after you have selected your text, hold the Alt/Option key and use the right/left arrows on your keyboard to kern the letters closer or farther apart.

Photo 08

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If you need to specifically alter the space between two letters, put the cursor between the two and use the alt/option +arrow keys to eek that space to be right where you want! Easy, huh? (see photo 09)

Step 6

Now you can add the floating box in the middle. Go to the paths palette and click on the path “layer” in the palette. Go to the flyout and choose “Make selection” and the path will be marching ants again! To modify it, go to Select>modify>contract>100 pixels, and do that twice so the marching ants are about ¼” smaller. (pixel number may vary depending on resolution of your file!) (see photo 10)

Photo 09

Photo 10

Once you are happy with the size of the square, make a blank layer and fill with any color. (see photo 11)

Step 7

Go to the layer Palette and turn the FILL down to zero so it is clear. NOT the OPACITY! (see photo 12)

Photo 11

Photo 12

Step 8 Double click on the layer to go to layer styles and add this style: Stroke: 5px, black.

Drop Shadow: angle 0, distance 0, spread 0, size 150.

Inner Glow: color white, opacity 50, size 100 px. (also add a slight drop shadow/inner bevel to the text). (see photo 13)

Photo 13

Step 9

To make the outer area darker and the text more evident, hold ctrl/cmd while you click on the thumbnail of the black block layer. This will select the block. Inverse the selection (shift+ctrl+I) [mac: shift+ctrl+I] so the outer area is selected. Now add an adjustment layer of Curves (layer>new adjustment layer>curves) and darken. (see photo 14)

Photo 15

Ta da! DONE!

Photo 14

This effect is accomplished almost the same way to create the “Circle of Life” image. A circular selection was made and converted to a path.

Text was put on the path and sized to complete the circle. The path was reselected, and inversed and a curves adjustment layer added to darken the outer edge. The harsh line was blended by filter>blur>Gaussian blur on the adjustment layer –which feathers the mask, and therefore the edge of the dark area! (see photo 15)

Lastly, new layers were made on which to stamp the curly brushes and then put in a group. (select layers and go to the flyout to “Create group from layers”. Once the group is made, a layer mask was added to the group (layer>layer mask>reveal all). I painted black on the mask to hide the curls in the center of the circle! Very cool! (see photo 16) Have fun and try this technique on all sorts of things! In a future article we will cover Text IN a Path and the Pen tool!

Photo 16 Editor’s Note: Suzette Allen has graciously given permission to the editor of Southern Exposure to publish portions of her Suzette’s Smart Series. This and other articles are re-printed with permission from the author.

contact CONTACT You may contact Suzette Allen at: suzette@suzetteallen.com or visit her website, www.suzetteallen.com 41