the muse - June

If you have not read the introduction to the project, please do so by clicking here

June

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/200,  f/5.6, single strobe

June 21, 2011
 
For June we headed out to Antelope Island. We teamed up with Lindzee Rae Floyd who is an amazing make-up artist. Here is a pic I took at the end of the night of Lindzee and Kat. They both did awesome and we had a great time. Hope we can pull this team together for a shoot sometime later in the year.

We started with a project that I had been wanting to shoot for a while. To accomplish this, I needed the lighting and the clouds to be the same which required a very quick changeover from one outfit to the next. We also had to change the make-up, location, and lighting for each of the five images. Everything went really smooth and Kat and Lindzee worked great together.
  

On the web, it is a difficult to see the detail in the image so, please

click the image for a larger view.   

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/200,  f/5.6 - 9.0, single strobe, 5 image composition

Kat had brought along a retro styled swimsuit and we headed over to the beach area for some classic pin-up shots. It took a little longer to get to the other side of the island then I planned so we were pushing it to get set-up before the sun set. 

Kat and Lindzee did awesome on recreating the look and the lighting was perfect. We even ended up with some unknowing extras in the background on a few shots. 

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/125,  f/5.6

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/125,  f/5.6

 

  Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/125,  f/5.6

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO50, 1/125,  f/5.6

The bugs were even a little worse on this side of the island and we all received many bites. After the shoot, we headed off the island. By the time we got to the other side of the causeway, the front of the car was covered with bugs. Not just a few but every inch of it at least 1/4" thick.  In fact as we were driving back it sounded like rain hitting the windshield. When we got into the city we had to find a gas station to wash the windshield just to be able to see. 


With the exception of the bugs, it was a great day! I got to work with two very talented ladies and got some great images. 

Kat and I have ideas for the July 'muse' shoot but no firm plans on location yet. Now that we are on a monthly schedule, the posts will be less frequent then they have been. I will post on my Facebook page as I update the blog but it will at least be once a month through the end of the year.
 

the muse - May

If you have not read the introduction to the project, please do so by clicking here

May

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/5.6

May 20, 2011


For May, we headed back out to Wendover. A couple buddy's of mine had been wanting to get together for a shoot out by the airbase so we decided to combine it with that. This allowed us to shoot for two days. Well, one and a half days.

We checked Kat in her room and drove around in the mountainous area (more like big hills) on the North side of town. It had rained lightly earlier in the day and some dramatic clouds remained and the lighting was fairly soft. However, the bugs were pretty thick. So, we doused ourselves in bug spray went to work. It's hard to tell from the following shots but this rock Kat is sitting on has some very sharp edges.

These next two were both shot single strobe and ambient. 

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/200,  f/6.3 , single strobe + ambient

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/200,  f/6.3, single strobe + ambient

This next image was captured on the Utah side. Like the sharp rocks above, these tracks were not the most comfortable or cleanest of places. But Kat never complains and keeps can do attitude. We have ruined many an outfit but I think the images we get are worth it.  
 

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/5.6, single strobe + ambient

  

While we were waiting to meet with my friends, both named Brian, we scouted locations. One place we had wanted to shoot was by the raceway on Salt Flats. However, when we arrived there, it was flooded. Right next to the road was about a foot deep. So, we headed out to find a new place. It actually worked out great because the location we found was awesome! 

We headed back to grab a few things and then went then met the Brians at the location. We had only been shooting for about ten minutes when we were approached by the property owner. It appears that it was secretly private property. The thing that made it so misleading is there is a huge sign at the entrance that read 'commercial vehicles must yield to trucks' and then in small letters, I found when I left, it said, private property no trespassing. I guess no harm but it only allowed us to get a few shots which was unfortunate because the lighting and clouds were awesome! 

The opening image was captured there as well as theses next couple images. All lit with a single strobe and ambient. 

 

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/5.6, single strobe + ambient

 This next image and the opening one are my favorite from the day. Kat fell right into character and I love the feel of them. 

 

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/5.6, single strobe + ambient

This last shot was just as we were packing it in. 'Little Brian', shot this for me. On second thought, this is actually my favorite shot from the day. Kat and I have developed a great relationship where we are comfortable together. We both get each other and know what expect. To me, she is more of a bud then a model. 

I'm the one on the right :)

 

 After we left, we headed back over to the raceway with the Brians. We were going to attempt some balanced shots of spinning steel wool with the model, lit well and sharp. We started with Brian's wife Megan spinning out in the middle of the water. Then, for the shots we wanted to get, we had Kat do some spinning on the road. The first practice one went well. The next shot is where things went awry and  it hit Kat in the head. On the bright side, she was fine and we were also able to make her disappear from the image. 

I hope to work on this in a future shoot.

The next image is the one that went awry with Kat spinning.

 Canon 7D, 17-40mm, ISO100, 121 seconds,  f/7.1

We headed back to the hotel and met up with the others from some dinner and planned out tomorrow's shoot. 

May 21, 2011

We headed over to the old airport. We wanted to get on the base property to shoot but could not get clearance. So, we headed over to the barracks area that I had shot Kat in a few shoots prior. 

The light was getting harsh fast so we started shooting inside the buildings. These next images were captured in the same building that I shot the image with Kat watching the TV from week 6. This next shot turned out exactly as I hoped and is one of, if not, my favorites from the day. I was shooting with a very wide lens and wanted to work with extreme angles, lines and color. I like the depth to the shot with the walls coming closer together as they draw closer to the floor. And Kat's submissive look up towards the camera adds a lot of drama to the image.  

 

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/160,  f/9, two strobes + ambient

Around the corner from this area was an old ladder device leaning against the wall. Really don't know exactly what it was used for. It was pretty dusty and dirty so we decided to dress Kat in white :)

I think the shots turned out Awesome! 

Here are a few-

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/7.1, two strobes + ambient

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/7.1, two strobes + ambient  

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/7.1, two strobes + ambient 

  

We then headed to the backroom of this building. Below are a couple of the shots. These show a lot more relaxed and natural Kat.

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/7.1, one strobes + ambient

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/9, one strobes + ambient

Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/9, one strobes + ambient

We headed back for lunch and to make battle plans for the afternoon. After lunch Kat and I went out scouting for locations again. We hiked up to a cave or whatever you call them when they don't go very deep. It appeared to be someones home. so we decided to keep looking. We also found a really rocky area that we will shoot in this evening. 

Before meeting up with the Brians, we captured a few images just outside of town. This image below is captured with a Canon 20D that has been converted to a dedicated infrared camera. 

  Canon 20D infrared, 17-40mm, ISO800, 1/160,  f/20

We headed over to the old Wendover swimming pool to meet the Brians. It is a really cool location and looks like it was a really active place in it's day. 

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/400,  f/5, natural light

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/640,  f/5, natural light

After we finished shooting at the pool, we headed to the rocky location we had found earlier in the day. When we arrived there the bugs were starting to get really bad. Back to the bug spray :(

We found an area that had graffiti on it and had a little fire pit in front. 

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO100, 1/640,  f/5, natural light

These next images turned out Awesome! And was a great way to finish the day. I was excited to have the lighting that we had and was really fortunate to be working with Kat who needed no direction and was quick to get ready and in postion so we didn't miss out. We were only at this place for anout15 minutes so it was great to be able to work so smoothly. 

  Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/100,  f/5, one strobe

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/125,  f/5.6, one strobe

 Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/100,  f/5, one strobe

For June, we are going to be heading out to Antelope Island. 

...............................Stay tuned  

the muse - April

If you have not read the introduction to the project, please do so by clicking here

April

Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO500, 1/125,  f/4.0

April 10, 2011

I have an art show that opens at the Utah Arts Alliance the first weekend of May 2011 so I needed a cover shot to introduce the muse project. I went through a lot of different ideas and decided on a heavy silhouette with strong shapes and patterns. My first choice was to really distort Kat's shape. In a good way though :)

I found a dress that had the general look I was going for and then went to modifying it. Since I am not a dress designer and don't think I could even darn socks, I resorted to a hoola hoop and gaffer's tape. I slit the back of the dress to give me some room and then rolled a hoola hoop in the bottom for a smooth round shape. I then taped Kat at the knees with the gaffer's tape to bring that together. The rest of the curves are all Kat.  

This was my original vision for the project piece. It is cleaned up a little but is close to out of camera.

  Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/200,  f/13.0

While we were shooting this piece I wanted to try some different looks. The image I ended up using is the one below. It took some time to find the right balance of detail and silhouette. Both of these shots were shot against white seamless with painted cardboard flags to build the doorway.   

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/200,  f/22.0

April 27, 2011      -     PART II

For our April shoot we shot some studio and some location. 

We started in the studio with some old Fresnel hot lights. I was going for more of the old Hollywood glamor style lighting. The beauty to this lighting style is the hard shadows and the imperfectness. 

The opening image and the two images below were both lit with these lights. As usual, Kat did awesome and really captured the mood I was looking for.

Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO500, 1/125,  f/4.0

And this next was my favorite from the studio session.

Canon 1Ds MKII, 70-200mm, ISO320, 1/250,  f/2.8

We then headed up on the roof of a nearby warehouse. The sun was starting to set so we had to work fast. Kat wore this cool dual zipper dress. It had a real matrix look to it so the roof was the ideal location. 

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/60,  f/5.0,  3'X6' reflector

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/80,  f/5.0,  3'X6' reflector

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/80,  f/5.0,  3'X6' reflector

This last shot was my favorite from the day. It is natural light. Kat fell into such a natural perfect pose it was almost too easy. 

Canon 1Ds MKII, 17-40mm, ISO100, 1/100,  f/5.0, natural light

We hadn't shot in a while and I really enjoyed working with Kat again. We picked up right where we left off and had a great time.

Looking forward to next month. We will be heading back down by Wendover to capture a few shots that we ran out of time on in our previous trip.