Ruby Sessions

Every couple of months since her birth I've had a photo session with my niece Ruby. In our first session when she was only 2 weeks old me, my mother, and sister all worked relentlessly just to position her as she slept like a lump. We worked over an hour trying to get her to wake up long enough to take a couple quick shots of her eyes open.

In the next session at 2 months positioning her was a little easier as she could now hold her head up. This time we worked tirelessly to try to capture one of her elusive smiles. We failed, but met the other goal of showcasing her newly vibrant blue eyes.



Then at 5 months it was the Fall and time for an outdoor shoot. She had learned to sit up for more than a few seconds literally the day before so we took advantage. She also was much more generous with her smiles.

At 6.5 months she was a full-fledged ham. It was a breeze taking her Christmas portraits as she was all smiles and incredibly responsive to the high pitched squeals from her Granny.

Obviously Ruby is on track to be the most photographed child in history. Hopefully by the time she gets to that very easily distracted age we will have her so trained she will be like a seasoned pro ready for her next fashion spread.

Engagement Portraits

A dear old friend of mine recently asked me to shoot her engagement photos. I had never shot these particular type of portraits so I did major inspiration hunting and spent a good hour location scouting. My favorite spot I found was a boarded doorway with a cute little black and white awning overhead. What I did not think about was that during our shoot it would be right in the sun. We had to wait for cloud coverage to get a shot and then the sun quickly came out again. I shot a few with the natural light, but it was just a bit too bright for my tastes. The shot below was the one and only frame I got off before the sun came out. Luckily I like it. My friend also really wanted a shot involving scrabble (a favorite past time of her and her fiancee). She had seen a picture shot from overhead of a couple on a blanket with a scrabble board. We concocted our own version of this. It was a lot of fun despite the fact that while getting positioned my friend accidentally scraped a chunk of skin off the face of her beloved. I assured them that the shoot could go on with a little photoshop magic.

Senior Portrait

My cousin Ashley from Michigan asked me to shoot her senior portraits like a year ago. We finally were in the same state last week so we along with my sister, aunt, grandmother, and baby cousin ventured out for the shoot. Me and my sister scouted out a couple pretty spots beforehand and then met them about an hour before sunset. I had minimal equipment considering all the fancy toys I've grown accustomed to belonged to the Athens Banner-Herald. The night before I constructed a mini softbox out of a frosted mini wheats cereal box coated in black duct tape and some white fabric. I used that along with a silver "reflector" that also conveniently doubles as a windshield sunshade. All and all I think it went okay despite the fact that my D300 shutter is about 95% blown. Luckily my sister has a D90 which I used.
This was my first time shooting in about a month and a half. I have to say I've really been surprised that I don't miss it. At all. I anticipate seeking out more shooting opportunities once my life has completely settled down and the itch for a creative adventure sets in. Also obviously I need to send my camera off for repair. For now however, I'm loving my desk job.










Ashley and her niece Amelia

I love sportraits!

Georgia gymnast Courtney Kupets 2009

When I shot my first sportrait almost 4 years ago I was completely clueless. I remember asking the reporter what the heck I was supposed to be doing with the high school shot putter.  I had so much anxiety every time I shot them. In those days I didn't even have an off camera flash cord so I was completely dependent on natural light or on camera flash. I would try to come up with concepts before heading out, but often just had to figure it out on the spot.

Holy armpit hair Batman! My first sportrait of Villa Rica High School shot putter Wesley somebody, 2005. This was literally day 3 at my first job and I didn't have my archiving system down yet so the cutline info is lost. 

Carrollton High School wrestler Andrew Roden 2005

West Georgia's Jonathan Smith 2005

 I finally got an off camera flash cord and then 2 years ago changed jobs and have had access to studio lights. These lights scared the crap out of me at first. I was completely intimidated by all the switches and plugs. Finally the fear went away as I got comfortable despite setbacks when nothing worked like it was supposed to or I forgot the sync cord.

Oconee County High School pitcher Derek Varanadore, 2007

This was my first sportrait using the white lightnings. It took me an embarrassing 10-plus minutes to figure out how to break down the lightstands.

Prince Avenue's Ian Rogan and Athens Christian's Whitney Bishoff 2008

Apalachee High School runningback John Lee 2008

After shooting a guy at a computer or the 4,000th building mug I have sportraits to satisfy me creatively. There is always something new to learn or try. I love sportraits!

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Georgia gymnasts from left Courtney Kupets, Courtney McCool, and Grace Taylor 2009