Potrait Much?

So portraits are fun. I enjoy them every now and then because they let me use strobes in ways general news doesn't call for. You get to weave your creativity into an image that needs to both inform and intrigue, and it can be difficult, depending on how much you want to do it up.

Normally my editor gets all of the cool portraits, but since he has been out, the staff has been turning to me to "git 'r dun." So here are portraits that have been printed in the most recent issues of The Towerlight.



This portrait was a jump in that I was notified I was going to do it that day, and when I got there my editor had been there 10 minutes before she said she would. SO...I set up my brella and asked him for a few seconds of his time, and this is what happened. Gruesome, in my opinion (sorry, Police dude). The light is very harsh and almost fake, and it just doesn't appeal to me...don't worry, it didn't run like this in the paper.



A few critiques and a day later, this is what happened to my shooting. I got the call that Nicole Burlew, pictured, was coming in and I was to do a portrait for cover. Ok...crap. What do I do? Cover, not in her "environment" (she was running for mayor of Aberdeen), and I had a time limit (duh). I pulled myself together and I thought the image turned out well. Nice sunlight to the back right, ella ella to the left, beautiful light.



Ok. This shoot happened 10 minutes after I was asked to do it. The Arts editor said that he wanted a portrait of this guy scheduled at 2:30. I have a lesson at 2:30, but it usually starts late anyway...no biggie, I'll just set up my equipment, ask him to please sit, and boom, be done. And that's exactly what I did. I like how the window light on the right seems to be the only light present. Little does the average reader know that there is a brelly over there as well, filling in his upper body and face. It would have looked terrible without. Props to my assistant Blake for helping with the setup.

Digression: There are these nasty bugs in my dorm. They have about 100 legs and they crawl on my walls, above and near my bed BTW, every now and then. I believe I just killed one...not sure, might have been a spider, which I am also not fond of. Oi...Towson...anyway.



Phew...last one (for now). This is cover for tomorrow issue. Similar situation as the mayor girl. This woman, who is a finalist in the Miss Maryland Pageant, was to come in for a shoot, not in her environment and completely improvised. Again, I thought I did alright. I have some different shots that are on my Flickr site with her and a trophy prop, but this is what the staff wanted on cover.

As you can see, lots of portraits, lots of strobing, not lots of recharging batteries (surprisingly). So if you happen to be at Towson, check out The Towerlight, maybe you'll see one of these lovely images in print.


Next up: Who knows. I think it's going to be another, yes you guessed it....a PJClass report! News is the name of the game this time, so I'll tell you about an experience that I had almost a month ago that sent me into the heart of a fire. Exciting, huh?