Beauty and the light

I can't say enough about light. The quality of it gives your photographs the emotional value that they each possess. The direction of it, the temperature, the amount, ...every aspect of it can affect your photo in a different way. I am learning that by manipulating the light I can give my photographs more feeling. The pure sunlight can give the photo a playful feel, the cloudy overcast skies can make the photo moody and sometime mysterious, the warm light of the sunset gives photos a romantic glow...and on and on. These few photos were taken in the middle of the day, but with some control of the light I was able to get the perfect tone and highlights....of course it didn't hurt that she was beautiful.

Photo Tip: Control the light by using diffusers like standing some one next to a window with sheer curtains if there is a lot of sunlight pouring inside. Or reflectors, like having a person hold a white poster board underneath their chin for fill light.

Holiday Promotion

Limited Offer for the Holiday Season All Sessions during the months of October, November, and December of 2009 will benefit from a 50% discounted rate on the Session Fee.


Special Holiday Package $175.00

Includes the following:
* A one hour session with the photographer for up to 4 people. The session will mainly focus on group configurations for the purposes of Holiday gifts and cards. Additional people will be $25.00 each.
* One enlargement of the photo of your choice up to an 8X12
* 5 digital neagatives of poses captured during this session for your unlimited use.
* Location will be decided upon booking.


Special Family Package $295.00

Includes the following:
* A two hour session with the photographer for up to 10 people. The session will mainly focus on getting a family portrait with the extended family members. Additional people will be $25.00 each.
* 3 enlargements of the family portrait up to an 11X14
*(optional) purchase of 10 digital negatives of other poses captured during this session for your unlimited use is $50.00
*The location will be decided upon booking.

Best in Show

They announced the winners of the Texas Photo Festival 2009 - and guess who was the winner of the "Best in Show" Category? Yours truly! Here's my winning photo. The set was of an old antique clothing store with lots of old time hats and shawls. The kids were Smithville's residences and were being models for a day. "Derek" is the boy in the photo, and he was had a very intense gaze and was able to be confident enough to look straight in to the lens. The girls had lots of beautiful big hats and boas and shawls to decorate themselves with, but the boys only had the hat and black jacket and the cigar! The character of this young man is all in his eyes. I loved to photograph him.

"Little Hawk" a Cherokee

It was true. I had not ever personally met an American Indian before. As I told him that I shook his hand and he was happy to tell me a little bit more about himself. He was adopted by his parents. They were not from the same tribe. He was a Cherokee.
"I am the black sheep of the family you know". He pointed out all of his tattoos that covered both forearms.
He also told me how proudly he served in the Marines as a Gunnery Sergeant for 22 years. He had patches of honor all over his leather vest. He pointed them all to me. He said he wants to go back to serve but they won't take him since he's 57.
Why are you named Little Hawk, I asked. "Because I fly high and protect the young", he said very quickly. "I am the elder, the kids respect me". As he stood by the table where he laid all of the skulls and bones he sold, I took a few photographs.



Photo Tip: People and their stories are inspiring. I wouldn't have been able to take "Little Hawk's" photo effectively if I hadn't listened to his story first. That's why in order to capture the essence of your subject in a photograph you need to get to know them. Case and pointe : Moms and Dads take some of the best photos of their kids, simply because they know them the most.

Kids. Little, medium, and big

After all that I photograph, I still come back to the subject of children. They possess a freshness and innocence that begs you to document its rarity. All body parts are brand new and shiny. Free smiles all around and when tears come, they are as pure as rain water. It amazes me always, how we are touched by children every time we are in contact with them . Photographing children can tell so many stories. With no preconceived notions, they make the best subjects. No wonder some of the most powerful photographs of all times are of children.

Photo Tip:

In taking photographs, try to capture the emotion rather than just the aesthetics. It comes with practice. You can sense a moment before it happens sometimes. You can have your camera ready and capture a few shots before and after just to make sure you get that one special one. In other words, shoot in burst.

Austin - Home Sweet Home

I love this town. It has character. It becomes more obvious every time I am away from this interesting city. I feel comfortable here. I feel good here. I am becoming even more aware of its beauty as I take more and more photographs around town. People like to be photographed with iconic scenes of their hometown. There are so many here. I find them one by one. Some of them are commonly seen in photos, like the 360 bridge or the Capital building...and some of them are rarely seen in any photos like the one I have here of my boys in front of the Gingerman. They are all parts of Austin and they all provoke different thoughts and memories for each person.

Photo Tip: Get a new perspective on an old subject. Create a twist to an otherwise ordinary scene. You can do this a lot of times with changing your position as compared to your subject. For example get really low or even put the camera on the ground and shoot what you see. Photograph a building from a different angle than most people view it. You might find your way more interesting.

Oceans, Mountains, and Fun

It's been a long time since the last post. The summer has kept me busy. Photography has been good and family life has been full of adventure. Our travels took us to Colorado and the Pacific Northwest. It allowed me to try my hand at some serious landscape photography. Sometimes it seemed I got so overwhelemed by the beauty of it all that I couldn't pick a good scene to photograph. In those times I had to take a deep breath and focus....and then just follow my insticts as a photographer. Light is everything. It makes or breaks a photograph. It gives it life. So with that in mind I have a few photos of our trip that I will share with you.

Photo Tip: The hour before Sunset is the "golden hour". That is when you should photograph outside. In our great state of Texas most of the day is brightly lit. So keep in mind the quality of light. One thing you can do to fill in the shadows on a face in a bright day is to use your on camera "fill in" flash. It will give your subject's face a little less contrast and more of the eyes can be seen.