Cam on the Rocks
August 15th, 2011
I’ve been busy. My trip to New York included shoots with three very different models in three very different settings. I’ve just begun to work on the editing of those shoots, but I’m thinking I’ll mix them up and post from all three over the next couple weeks. I might get distracted from that, though, since I have two more shoots scheduled this week with three very different models in two very different settings. At any rate, I should have plenty of new photos for posts for some time to come.
First, from my trip, I stopped along the way to the city to do a shoot with Cam Damage near her home in Pennsylvania. She took me for a hike in one of her favorite places and there were ample opportunities for excellent photos. Cam is a fine model, although this turned out to be her first shoot outdoors. But she figured things out pretty well and did a fine job. With some experience she’s sure to be a great outdoor figure model. We had good luck with the light that day. There were plenty of clouds to provide the softer light I prefer. The sun came out between the clouds now and then and that provided some variety in the light…and I could just wait for the next cloud if I thought the softer light was better.
The Wet Is History
August 13th, 2011
I took my friend Lost Coast Photo to see this waterfall yesterday. The stream was completely dry. That usually happens in June, but because it was so wet this year it didn’t dry up until now. But no more photos of water going over this waterfall until next year.
So, here’s another of Angie while there was still plenty of water. Angie has worked with me at this waterfall many times, but she did a great job of finding new things to do that worked very well. And she is so beautiful too. That always helps.
Lost Coast Photo left this morning to drive back to Chicago. So life is back to normal here. I have some new shoots coming up in the next couple weeks and lots of editing to do on all the things I shot on my NYC trip, so those will start showing up here soon.
The weather has finally gotten back to normal with tolerable temperatures and humidity for outdoor work. And the air conditioning in the studio now seems to be able to keep up with the temperature, so it’s pretty comfortable there too. It will probably get hot again, but not for much longer. September is only a couple weeks away now. I love the fall, and I have some big plans for some amazing photo work in the fall, so I’m really looking forward to it.
Angie Even Wetter
August 11th, 2011
Here’s another of Angie at that waterfall that should have been dry by this time of year. It was hot that day, of course, so all that spray didn’t feel bad at all. And Angie, as always, looks pretty wonderful while she’s getting wet.
The drive back from NYC was uneventful. The first 20 miles getting out of the city, which had taken me an hour and a half on the drive in, took only 20 minutes on the way out of town. So that got things off to a great start and I encountered no significant traffic issues on the drive at all. Made it home in time to have dinner with my family.
Tonight my friend from California, Lost Coast Photo, will be arriving for a short visit. He’ll spend some time tomorrow shooting with some of my favorite local models at some of my favorite locations.
Soon I’ll be getting to the photos from my trip.
Angie in the Water
August 8th, 2011
The day after I did the shoot with Char I took Angie out the the local waterfalls. I’ve shot Angie at this spot many times, at all times of the year, including the dead of winter, but we found something new to do with all the water there on this day.
I’ve been in New York City for the past few days visiting my friend Dave Rudin. The Elliott Erwitt show at the International Center of Photography was worth the trip, but I followed that up with great shoots with Theda on Sunday and Julie Max today. So I’m going to have lots of new stuff to post after I get home.
But I’m going to make this a short post because it’s late and I’ll be getting up before dawn tomorrow to get an early start on the drive back home.
The Last of Char
August 5th, 2011
Well, I certainly hope it isn’t the last photo of Char Rose to be posted here, but this will be the last one for now from this one day of shooting. What a totally successful shoot that was. It helps to have a beautiful and talented model. This was up the creek above the waterfall where we had been shooting. Nice little waterfalls to enjoy with the stream flowing much more than it usually does this time of year. In fact, it is often completely dry by now. But there is nothing normal about this year.
If all goes well there will be more shoots with Char coming in the near future.
And, speaking of beautiful and talented models, I worked with a new one (to me) yesterday. On my way to New York City I stopped off in Pennsylvania for a day of shooting with Cam Damage. I noticed her when she modeled for some friends of mine and we had been talking for more than six months about doing a shoot. So I finally found the right time and we did it. You’ll be seeing the results here in the near future.
And, yes, I am now in New York, staying with my friend, Dave Rudin. Tomorrow we are meeting some friends and going to the International Center of Photography to see the Elliott Erwitt show there. Erwitt has always been one of the photographers who inspire me. He was a star photojournalist back when I became aware of photojournalism and decided that was what I wanted to do with my life. I later became disillusioned with photojournalism as a career, but never lost my respect and admiration for those, like Erwitt, who were able to show how it should be done. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to seeing this show.
I also have shoots scheduled with a couple NYC models while I’m here. One is one of my all-time favorites who I try to shoot every time I get to the city. The other is a new model to me, but one who is a true beauty and has much experience and obvious talent. So it should be a great visit if all goes well. And I even found a parking space almost immediately when I got here, only a block from Dave’s building. That kind of made up for the hour and a half that it took me to go the last 20 miles to his place. I’m glad I don’t live here. Love to visit, couldn’t deal with it on a daily basis. But it’s a great city with much to offer. I once thought I wanted to live here, but I think I’ve gotten too old to handle it.
L’Allure des Mots
August 2nd, 2011
The second issue of this wonderful on-line magazine has just been published. It’s as beautiful as the first issue, even without any of my photos in it. Really, check it out. It’s a work of art.
http://www.lalluredesmots.com/issues/issue2/issue2.html
Up The Creek
July 31st, 2011
After Char Rose and I shot all those photos at the last waterfall we decided to wander on up the creek above the waterfall. Usually by this time of year this creek is dry and there is no water going over the waterfall. Obviously this is not a normal year. I’ve shot in this creek when it is dry and it makes a very nice setting. But it works when it has water in it too, as you can see.
I’m still suffering from the heat and not doing much outside. And it doesn’t look like it is going to cool down to normal temperatures any time soon. But I have some new shoots coming up…some in and some outdoors…so there should be lots of new material for the blog soon.
Meanwhile, I have more of Char coming too. This was a great shoot with a great model and produced more “keepers” than I usually get on a shoot. And I’ve also done a shoot with one of my old favorite models that will be showing up here after I finish posting the Char photos.
Now, if we can just keep the air conditioners running long enough at the studio to actually get it cooled down I might be able to shoot some new stuff in there too.
More of Char Getting Wet
July 28th, 2011
Yep, I got a lot of keepers on the shoot with Char at this waterfall. This is the last one of her at this waterfall that I’ll be posting here. There are more to come from the shoot, though…we moved on to a couple more locations after this one. The spray was really getting her in this spot. Sounds good today as the temperature is back up in the mid-90s.
There’s a tree trimming crew working on the the giant Elm tree in our yard today. It dropped a limb on our house and the neighbor’s house last week. I actually had a note to call the tree trimmers for this week, so I did and they are cleaning up the mess from the limb that fell and cleaning up the tree so it won’t happen again. We have the tree worked on regularly to try to avoid problems, but got caught this time. Not a whole lot of damage to the houses, though, so it’s not a big disaster. Still waiting for the insurance adjuster to come and see it, though.
I’ve been looking for a few more models to work with on a regular basis and I think I found one this week. I’ll be setting up a shoot with her in August, so if all goes well, you’ll be seeing her here soon.
Plus I have shoots with several other models, some new and some old favorites, coming up in the next week, so we’ll have some new material here soon. But I’m sure you aren’t getting tired of Char yet, are you? Who could get tired of a beauty like her?
Wet Char
July 23rd, 2011
The heat wave continues. I’m trying to just stay indoors in the air conditioning until it passes. I had intended to do some work at the studio this past week, but the new, larger air conditioning units we have installed there seem to keep tripping circuit breakers. I went in yesterday to find them both off and the temperature in the studio simply intolerable at 95F degrees. I managed to get both units working again and made some changes that I hope will keep them running. Maybe I can work there this coming week.
Meanwhile there’s Char again, getting good and wet from the spray off that waterfall. As I’ve said, she did a great job working the area around that waterfall, resulting in a bunch of photos that I’m very happy with. She is a fine model…and a nice person to boot. I hope we’ll be doing a lot more work together.
In other news, a tree limb fell onto the corner of our house yesterday without warning. We had been intending to get a tree trimmer out to work on the big tree in our our yard and to remove another smaller tree that died for unknown reasons this summer. In fact, I planned to make the call to the tree trimmer this coming week. But now I need to wait for the insurance adjuster to come and see what has happened. Not a lot of damage, but it did break and knock some tile off our roof…and tile repairs always seem to be unreasonably expensive, so we’ll see what the damage really is.
Cool Water
July 20th, 2011
Boy that water splashing off the waterfall looks good. She was getting wet while we were shooting this one. I wouldn’t mind lying there where Char Rose is lying, except that there would be a long hot hike and some climbing and scrambling over rocks required to get there. Like most of the middle of the US, we are having a heat wave. A really nasty heat wave. I’ve decided to treat it the same way I would a major blizzard in the winter: Just stay inside until it is over. I’m so happy we have air conditioning.
My son-in-law had a large air conditioning unit that he wasn’t using, so I borrowed it and installed it at the studio. Now it is significantly cooler inside the studio than outside. Once this heat wave passes I suspect that we will be able to maintain a normal room temperature in the studio. For now it is at least a lot cooler. So I just need to set up some studio shooting to pass the time until the weather gets better. The forecast has this hellacious weather extending out for the coming week, so I don’t know when I’ll get back to working outdoors. Not until it cools down to a more reasonable temperature.
Char did a great job working around that waterfall, getting into difficult spots and doing perfect poses. Still more from this shoot to come.
