Are you an artist? | Kirkland, WA photographer

What exactly is an artist?  Who determines if you ARE or AREN’T an artist?  The realization of this question asked by Kevin Kubota at WPPI made me stop.  And think.  Am I an artist?  Well, I can’t draw to save my life.  My stick figures look sickly and if you ask my daughter what happened when she asked me to draw a flamingo-you may laugh as hard as she did.  So, what is an artist?  The first thing that comes to mind when I think about an artist is some type of drawing or painting.  My dad is an artist.  He entertained us for hours at church by drawing funny things that often resembled ourselves.  My daughter is an artist (an eight year old artist) who can depict vases of flowers and barns filled with animals.  My mom is not an artist and unfortunately I have her drawing genes (sorry mom).  I have friends that are called artists and husbands of friends that are artist.  Who named them?  When did they get comfortable calling themselves artists?  How does one become an artist?

Is it education?  Is it dedication?  Is it earned or deserved?  Is it longevity?  Is it based on how much money your artistic works bring in?  Is it based on who your know or who knows you?  I looked it up and found this:

art·ist

[ahr-tist]

1. a person who produces works in any of the arts that are primarily subject to aesthetic criteria.

2. a person who practices one of the fine arts,  especially a painter or sculptor.

3. a person whose trade or profession requires a knowledge of design, drawing, painting, etc.: a commercial artist.

4. a person who works in one of the performing arts,  as an actor, musician, or singer; a public performer: a mimeartist; an artist of the dance.

5. a person whose work exhibits exceptional skill.

6. a person who is expert at trickery or deceit: He’s an artist with cards.

I’m happy to say that I was then open to the idea that I might, just might, be an artist .  I don’t have to draw or dance (which I do love to wear my belly dancing jingly thing and move around the house and PRETEND that I have skills) or sculpt or mime.   The title, Artist,  is subjective.  What I call art and what you call art may be on opposite sides of the spectrum.  And that’s ok.

Answers to those frequently questions | Kirkland, WA Photographer

I am open and willing to share-just ask!  I get a couple of emails throughout the week asking about a location or a process.  I feel like there is this unwritten rule that you can’t ask other photographers their so called secrets. We all have our own styles, we are all working on our own styles.  I am flattered that you would be interested in my work and want to know more about it.  Please feel free to ask, leave comments or continue emailing me.  Either way, I will provide the answers!  In my humble opinion, I think it is crazy when people won’t answer questions or keep locations as a secret.  That’s all I will say about that (trying really hard to keep my fingers from typing and typing and typing on this subject).

1. Where is the junkyard located? The junkyard that I like to visit is on the southwest corner of Ray and Higley in Gilbert, AZ.  BUT, the last time I was there, there owner was not pleased.   I did get permission 2 days in advance but the one to give permission (who is always there and barely speaks English) is not the owner.  Apparently, the gentleman who tends the lot allows anybody to walk on and that has caused some damage and some loss.  I chatted with her and she was understanding of my goals.  If you anticipate shooting there, please ask a few days in advance.  Please be courteous of private property.  Don’t ruin it for those who do take precaution and use respect.  You would hate to be in the middle of a photoshoot and be asked to leave.  The place to park is on the side street which is west of the junkyard and across the street from Joe’s Farm Grill.  One more word to the wise… get a liability waiver signed if you will be shooting there.  There is too many opportunities for something to happen.  There is barbed wire, broken glass, sharp metal, protruding nails, etc.  It is a great place with textures, colors, grunge, and creative bliss.  BUT, be careful.

2. How do you get your colors to pop?  What actions do you use? I’m not an action girl… I like fast processes but I don’t like to pay for actions that work for everybody else.  I like a simple color pop and usually the steps I do give me the look I like so I have created some of my own actions and they go something like this; 1. unsharp mask (portraits are at about 75, 2, 3 and other type images are at 15, 45, 5 and I tweak as needed). 2. curves layer (pulling down my darks just a tad and bringing up my highlights just a tad to increase contrast).  You can adjust the opacity of your curves layer if it adds too much.  That’s it.  Well, generally speaking that is it.  If skin needs to be touched up, I do that.  Sometimes I run my own version of a vignette.  AND sometimes I make a copy of the current layer and change it to be a soft light or screen layer (depending on what I need) and reduce the opacity to be around 20%.  I used to run a Kubota action that I learned from Melissa Jill blogsite but I haven’t gone that route in a while.  It was the KevX-process combo (not sure if that was the exact one that she was using) and I would then reduce the opacity to about 20% but it made the images too “cool” for me.  (ha, cool meaning color).  So, I suppose you could say my style is pretty simple.  I love color.  I like contrast.  I don’t do any wicked processing on my images-it doesn’t represent me or my style.  I’m not saying that I never will-but at this point in my journey I’m not.  : )

3. Do you use Lightroom? Well, yes I do.  I would never refer to myself as the LR master but I like what it can do for me-how’s that for selfishness?  (I recommend following Jared Platt on Twitter if you are interested in learning more tidbits each day). I am obsessed with organization and LR gives me just that-control and organization.  1. load to lightroom and copy as DNG.  2. gently boost contrast  3. reduce clarity a bit on portraits  4. change camera calibration to camera standard on portraits (I don’t remember where I learned this but I like what I see with this simple change)    5. sharpen a bit   6. check color and exposure  7. sync them  8. review them individually to check for any spots, blemishes, etc.  9. move to PS to do the things mentioned above.   I think that is what I do-I’m trying to step through it using my memory.  : )  I am teaching a webinar on Lightroom in May.  If you are new to LR or deciding if you want to use LR, come join me!  Use this link to go to the registration.

Photo A Day is going strong!  Here’s the Flickr page.

WPPI Las Vegas, 2011

So, you meet people for the first time after what started as an online relationship…  Before you know it you are doing things that you never would have imagined.  Get comfortable and let me explain.

I arrived in Vegas on a Sunday evening where I was planning to connect with Kelli.  I actually enjoyed sitting around, catching up on my Words With Friends games and doing a great amount of people watching while waiting for her delayed plane.  She finally landed safely and she was the only one that I knew-and by “knew” I don’t mean that we were from the same school, neighborhood, or even city.  Kelli and I started our relationship as teacher/student.  We officially met (that real life thing) in October when she happened to be in Arizona with her husband on a romantic weekend getaway (in Arizona? ok, whatever works) and I in Arizona to shoot some mini holiday sessions.  We realized our paths were crossing and planned a quick meet-up. We dined at Joe’s Farm Grill between our daily business and duties and then we went on our merry ways.  So, there we were at the airport together laughing with anticipation about our upcoming week at WPPI.  We arrived at MGM Grand and I met my roommates, Brianne Hall and Jaclyn Davis (who actually arrived later due to some well, ummm… wrong flight problems) who were more adorable than their avatar would show and we all headed to dinner to meet up with some other graduates from Kelli’s mentorship.  Many of the women and I are virtual friends-we help each other through our online forum offering suggestions and ideas for our businesses.  There we were.  Together.  At the same table.  In real life.  That moment when you get to put a one inch avatar together with a real face is life changing.  You should try it.

After some digestion and relaxation, we headed back down to meet up with Leah from Go4Pro, Spanki Mills, Noelle Reynolds, Anna DeMille, Carrie Rainey, Stac Worthington, and Angela Richardson all of whom I had never met online or in person before (thank you Kelli for the nudge).  Within moments of our chit chat, trying to get passed the awkward first meet-up moments with a million loud people around us and a ring a ling ding on the slot machines surrounding us, we determined that it was time to take our party to the hotel room.  Yep.   See what I mean about this… First call was pajamas and then it got crazy from there.  Once you have pajamas on, you can’t promise that anything good is going to happen.  For instance, I don’t know that I have ever eaten so many chocolate eggs in one night.  Anyhow, before we knew it, there was jumping on the beds, mock boudoir sessions (complete with cotton socks, sweat pants, a DJ and a lamp), and cinematography all  happening in that MGM Grand, 20 floors up.

The good news about all this was that 1. laughter is good exercise.  2. I now have fellow photographers that I call friends (who are uberly talented and gifted).  3. we lost sleep from the very first night… no need to adjust later.  4. I learned the beauties of lamp light and a good DJ.  I think it is safe to say that WPPI will make it on my calendar next year.  My first year was no let down and it can only get better, right?  I was surrounded by people that inspired me and challenged me to do things, understand things and change things.  All in all,What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas.   (AND… Well, what is a post without my Photo A Day update?)

The Flash Bus and all that jazz

I looked around the room and quickly determined that I was the minority… I was under the age of 50 AND I was female.  (Which by the way, I get the same feeling when I walk into Tempe Camera in Tempe, AZ where most employees and customers are sporting grey facial hair and a scarce amount on their heads.)  I embraced our differences and picked a seat squished between two grey goatees (or something like that, I was too focused on the show that was about to begin).  I chose the closest empty seat and asked if it was available.  Lucky me, it was.  Then, I became aware of the chitter chatter surrounding my existence regarding how many years in the field, what type of work was being created, what contests were won and what famous photographers were their heroes.  I felt like those around me were fluffing up their feathers, determining who was the alpha.  I kept to myself, anxious to learn all that I could because I wanted to be the only one who knew that clearly I was not a flash diva, not even a lamp lover.  I was there to learn and soak up, like a sponge, all the information I could hold, retain and use.  Hence my reason for signing up the minute I saw promotions for The Flash Bus!

What I learned at this conference was something so simple yet so difficult.  There is not ONE way to do light.  Light is light.  Some have a tactical approach, some have a faithful approach.  The tactical approach describes David Hobby, who is a light master, has a fabulous blog, Strobist, where you can learn every about using flash and more and he has years and years of experience.  His new approach to photography and blogging is very unique and inspirational.  I yearn to know what he knows and think like he thinks.  The faithful approach is Joe McNally.  I was immediately at ease with Joe.  See that, like we are friends… JOE.  Anyhow, I never felt like Joe was trying to earn his superiority (is that a word).  We all know him and respect him and he too has many years in the field.  He was a photographer for Life Magazine so he obviously is qualified.  : )  Part of my love for Joe came when he told us that he says, “Let’s see what happens,” several times during his shoots (all while keeping his assistants wondering why he hasn’t figured it out after 35 years) .  He has faith that it will be something cool based on his vision and then tweaks it if it didn’t work out.  Joe McNally blog is a fun way to see his latest leaps of faith.  : )  Joe inspired me to stop trying to get it perfect-just go for it.  I have a tendency to over study and over research.  I need to put it in action now and tweak it as I go.  I loved the different approaches, I loved the different schools of thought, I loved the inspiration and I loved their passion for getting the light right!  I also loved the open question session at the end where we were able to put our minds at ease, learn more about them and feel like we got our money’s worth.  :)

As I am typing this out, it leads me to my next thought and possible post… natural light vs. other light.  Hmmmm…

To see the latest photos from Photo A Day, go to my Flickr page!

Mustaches

What do you think?  I sort of like the look.

Meet my dear friend and  Mentor -Kristin Conk.  We got together at WPPI and had fun at the photo booth.  I think I am a natural at mustaches… it seemed to come easy for me and Kristin, well she struggled with keeping hers right where it should be.  Should I be proud?  There was much covered at WPPI and it definitely was not short of fun and friendship.  I went to be inspired, make changes and be enlightened and came back with much more.  I highly recommend getting yourself a mustache to see what it can do for you!

Headshots | Kirkland, WA Photographer

I mentioned THE headshots.  Here is the 8 minute “studio” session involving 4 ladies that wanted headshots.  Incredible, huh?  I am grateful to call these ladies friends and I certainly look forward to learning from them.  Come along, down the road of an 8 minute headshot session for 4 ladies (the fourth was me).

Meet Brianne Hall.  Brianne and I met the first night I arrived… she was a roommate.  Isn’t it funny how you can be friends but not really be friends?  I had never met Brianne but knew her from a photography forum.  What I learned about Brianne is that she is a solid, determined girl!  She is a wedding photographer and dedicated to doing things right!  When she stood up, I was surprised by her height.  She is a stunning, awesome six feet tall.  I have always been short-I envy those that are not vertically challenged.  She is one of sweetest girls and always ready for good time!  She woke up every morning ready for a new day, a new class and a new opportunity.  On our day of headshots, she did not disappoint with her darling dress, cardigan and pearls.  She walked the sassy walk for us just as we would have our kids, seniors or fashion models do.  (do those all even belong in the same category?)  She never stopped wanting to do better, learn more and achieve whatever is possible.  It was a privilege to get to know her.  She was a fabulous roommate and she is an excellent photographer!  I loved how Brianne was ready to go at any given time and yet so independent.  She was there for the right reasons!  Thank you for being a great example Brianne!

Meet Kelli France.  I met Kelli for a few brief moments in October while I was in AZ for some Queen Creek mini sessions.  I had known Kelli for what seemed like a million years although I completed the business mentoring through Francypants Academy just last year and loved her ever since.  I am passionate about business and can’t turn that business brain off.  Well, I think Kelli may be a match in that area!  She is always forward thinking with her business.  Anyhow, we joined up at the airport and proceeded to laugh our way from gate to baggage to MGM.  Kelli is a whirlwind of laughter and an excellent teacher.  She is the entertainment at a midnight PJ party and up for some dancing even in those plaid PJ’s.  Her style is adorable and she is an excellent photographer from bellies to babies and tots to teens (Kelli, did I just get your tagline right?)  Kelli was another roommate and kept us tossing business ideas and sharing thoughts.  What a great way to spend our time at WPPI!  I loved the way she was asking for commitments before we left our conference-committment for growth, for change, for improvements.  She is a leader!  Thanks for helping me sort and commit to change Kelli!

Meet Jaclyn Davis.  Jaclyn impressed me from the get-go with story of the accidental flight to Reno (instead of Las Vegas) while keeping a smile.  She brushed it off like another day in the life.  She was easy to be around and humble and talented.  Her personality was a treasure and she was friendly to all those who came in contact with her.  Jaclyn was also a roommate and although we were “friends” on the forum, it was a gift to get to know her.  Jaclyn was a bucket of knowledge and was ready to share with everyone.  She loved her McDonald’s mornings and often lost her shoes in our tiny room.  She was fun, giggly and driven.  I loved her bright colors and her simple style.  I loved how Jaclyn never got her feathers ruffled.  I love how she can take a horrible experience (flying to Reno and taxied to the supposed MGM before realizing she wasn’t in Vegas) and turn it into a great story that brings a room together in laughter and fun…  we were laughing WITH her not at her.  ; )  Thanks for being so fun and light-hearted Jaclyn.  You are darling! (and I am happy to say that I finally learned how to spell your name)

Meet Katie Kulzer.  I must admit that Katie was nearly a stranger but that didn’t stop me from loving her right away.  I could see her spunk and friendliness from the moment I met her.  I love me some spunk!  Her fashion was edgy and she had a bright smile. I wish I had more pictures of this adorable photographer BUT with 4 others in your way and only 8 minutes, it is difficult to get more shots.  She rocks the sassy dress and short hair.  I can’t wait to get to know her better!  Katie, thanks for being so kind and friendly to a stranger!  I hope to see more of you on that fabulous forum!  : )

What a lucky girl I am, to rub shoulders with these ladies, to know they are friends but to now KNOW they are my friends.  I love sharing-sharing ideas, challenges, talent and thoughts.  It was truly a fantastic conference and was not short of fabulous people.  I am grateful for the opportunity to attend WPPI 2011!

If you are following my Photo A Day project, you can see more here.

Photo Challenge Week 8 | Kirkland, WA Photographer

Have you ever wanted to be a fly on a wall?  I have for sure.  This week’s challenge let me be more than a fly on a wall… I was a bug on the floor.  Ha.  The challenge was to capture something from a bug’s perspective.  WHAT?  My first thought was get at the bottom of the forty eight foot tall Hammering Man at the Seattle Art Museum but since I couldn’t drag anybody down there with me for the shot, I waited until Sunday night approximately 12 hours before the assignment was due to get this (can we say procrastination?).  Maybe this should be called Squishing the Bug.  Those beauties are my rugged rain boots, a must in Kirkland, WA.  I put the camera on the floor with my Canon 580EXII on camera left, also on the floor.  It was dark where I was shooting but since the flash was so close, I set it to 1/128 and my camera was set at f 4.0, iso 400, ss 200.  Ok, so I got that set up and played a little bit and ended up liking the second shot the best… this one.   I like that the heel of the boot is in focus and the upper boot is not-just like our eyes when something is too close.  I was holding the boot with my left hand, laying on my stomach, trying to focus the camera and capture the “stomp” moment.  I eventually gave up trying to do it myself and asked for a little assistance.  The shots I got with assistance didn’t turn out the way I had hoped so I resorted back to my first few.  I love that the boundaries are endless with a little OCF and I wish that there were no boundaries with time.  There is this thing called sleep, which I am trying to get a little more of in my life, and this other thing called meals.  Stopping for those kinds of things are a little inconvenient but much needed.

If you are following Photo A Day, you can see the updates here.

Slap-it’s back to reality | Kirkland, WA Photographer

Here I am coming back from winter break… it was snowing and about 25 degrees around here when I arrived on Thursday night. Thankfully, during the Winter break, I went to Las Vegas where it was sunny and about 55-60 degrees. It was lovely. I visited Las Vegas for WPPI as it is there every year. I was inspired on many levels and had the opportunity to meet, mingle and learn from some great photographers. Each day was filled, I mean filled from 8:00am to 10:00pm with classes, speakers, and meet-ups.  I was struggling with light the whole time I was there-feeling frustrated that I was never able to get some “normal” light to work with.  And then, I was reminded about the secret of the casinos.  There are no windows and no clocks with hopes that you will stick around all day and night without regard to time.  Ah, tricky.  On one evening I met with Kelli France and other students from her Francypants Academy for some headshots.  MGM Grand did  not look kindly upon us trying to use their pool grounds about eight minutes before they closed.  We squished in as many as we could but when the clock struck 5:00pm, they approached with a smile and reminded us that it was quittin’ time.  I am ready to put into action some things that came from this conference!  I am ready to work on my craft.  I am ready to get some models.  I am ready to make some changes.  Unfortunately, my head is swarming and I can only do so much at a time.  I am learning patience.  I thought maybe one thing per month would work for me.  : )  BUT, first I am making changes around here.  Remember my Photo A Day project?  I am keeping up with it but try not to bore you here.  I am entertaining the idea of keeping it where it is now… on Flickr.  So, if you are at all interested in my personal project of documenting the daily and ordinary, you can go to my flickr set.

One of the speakers, Mary of Justin and Mary Marantz, made the biggest impact on me. It was a perfect way to end my WPPI experience.  Thank you to Kristin Conk for convincing me that I needed to be there!  Most of the speakers I didn’t know much about so it was great to branch out and discover some awesome talent and some very saavy business people!  Below is a picture of some business cards, duh!  I excused myself to the restroom and came back to a fancy display of some business cards.  : )  I thought it was creative, regardless of the lovely overhead lamp, and wanted to document a fun moment with other photographer ladies at lunch.  Thank you WPPI for the opportunity to mix with these gals!  I look forward to going again next year.  Until then, Studio 54 will have to dance the night away with Mr. Ferrari bling boy and his orange pants!

Winter Break | Kirkland Family Photographer

All the schools will be out, the ski slopes will be swamped and the snowmen will be made…. it is winter break and I am doing just that!!!!  BREAKING.  You see, I am from AZ and need a REAL winter break.  I either need to get out and make the most of it or take a vacation from it.  Either way, I won’t be plugging away at the computer while I am BREAKING.   More from me in a week.

Happy Valentine’s Day

To share in the love on this day, I thought I would share this with you… A little about what I love and a little bit about what I don’t love and my JoTotes camera bag.  BTW, don’t expect to ever see me dressed up in a fancy fluffy pink shirt unless I run into you at church!  : )  Just sayin’  AND, I should have let those darling kids of mine join in the movie making because after several takes and getting about one minute from completion before one of them poked their head in the camera or behind the sofa, I was ready to give up.  All I can say is thank goodness for some good ‘ol fashion Quiet Time.