LindsayDanielsPhotography: Documentary

Showing posts with label Documentary. Show all posts

December 22, 2012

Portraits

Portraits aren't exactly my gig, but for the last month I've been doing quite a few. I guess with the holidays everyone wants their portraits taken for Christmas cards, and I am more than willing to do my best to accommodate their needs. I love photography, but there are things I love and things I like to photograph. Portraits are one of those things I like to photograph. I've been lucky to photograph some amazing people that I admire and look up to. So my experiences have gone from nerve-racking to casual and fun. I feel like my approach to portraits is more casual and honest than anything. My experience in documentary work has given me the confidence to keep shooting when situations are more candid and not as staged. I think the best portraits come from moments like these anyway.

If you're interested in getting your portrait taken (families, individuals, bridals, studio, outdoor...), give me a call: 801.232.2153. I am willing to negotiate price. Call or email me with inquiries (lindsaydanielsphotography@gmail.com).

August 14, 2012

Bonneville Speed Week 2012

The Yankee Engineuity Express starts down the flats reaching 153 MPH.

Another day full of engines, salt, and speed! Bonneville Speed Week is like nothing else. Men and women spend the year building and perfecting their vehicles in hopes to squash land speed records on the fastest course in the world. Racers of all types lined up despite the wetter-than-usual salt this year. A storm had hit the night before, closing two of the three courses, but had not managed to dampen any spirits. Spectators, racers and photographers were as giddy as school children; something about loud and fast cars that gets people excited.

Those invested in the 'projectiles' wait anxiously while docked at the starting line, waiting for their signal. Large trucks peel out as they push the aerodynamic cars down the course until they can reach third gear pace. The crowd waits for the punch as the driver finally picks up his own speed and quickly disappears into the mirage near the edge of the horizon.

Many come to show off what they've been working on during the past year, revving engines and lifting hoods ready to share their life story to any passerby curious enough to strike up a conversation. Those who have been coming back since the beginning, however, are there for only one reason; to get some speed!

This car waited hours at the starting line, only to pull off at mile 2 after reaching 161 MPH.

The salt flats are aptly named, as there is no shade to speak of. You have to make your own if you want to be out of the sun.

Some of the competitors have used their life savings to build the kind of car required to reach speeds of up to 400 MPH.

Speed Week is a perfect time to show off your pride and joy, even if it never races for timed speed.

Photographically speaking, I kept my Singh-Ray warming filter on my 17-40mm and my Vari-N-Duo (warming filter and neutral density filter combo) on my 70-200mm. This allowed me to get shots that weren't completely blown out by the bright scene and play around with a slower shutter speed (see first photo). As all races are held during the day, the bright harsh light is always a factor when shooting Speed Week. It just becomes part of the scene. I would definitely suggest a warming polarizer of some sort. It make just that extra bit of difference in such harsh lighting.

People from all over the world come to see speed records fall at the salt flats.

June 06, 2012

The Importance of Composition

Greg Laswell at the State Room singing "Landline" unplugged.

There are several factors that go into producing great imagery, but some of the most elementary photo lessons, such as the "Rule of Thirds" or leading lines, remain invaluable. One question I ask myself before I even click the shutter is, "How am I leading the reader's eye to the subject?" Most often it will be because of the composition or how the light falls on a scene. In the photo above, Greg is obviously the main subject. He's the front man, on stage, with a guitar in his hands. What makes this photo engaging is the composition. Technically, this photo is subpar. It's noisy (high ISO), a bit fuzzy, and not in the best light. But what it lacks technically, it makes up for in composition and emotion. It captures a moment: the audience listening intently, trying to catch a photo of the man on stage, and Greg, humbly playing his acoustic guitar, unplugged. You can't always get the perfect light, or the perfect moment. If you go into a situation trying to capture something that just isn't there, use other tools in your bag. Reach for the fundamentals. Putting all your eggs in one basket is constraining. Have a back up plan. Adapt to your surroundings and you'll come home with winning imagery.

Using the "Rule of Thirds" and leading lines.

I'd love to hear your feedback. Do you think this image works? Does the composition or moment make up for the lack of technical details?

December 16, 2011

Roller Derby

The Red Rockettes faced the Happy Valley Derby Darlins in a roller derby battle last night. The Derby Darlins quickly took the lead and never looked back. It was a great night for roller derby and a great night for photography. My action shots weren't turning out the way I wanted them, so I focused on the eccentricities of the derby girls and got a few shots I liked.

I learned a lot about roller derby and learned a few lessons for photography as well.

November 28, 2011

Cataloging Photos with Adobe Lightroom

I've been reviewing old photos and came across several that I had dismissed initially but are actually some of my favorites in their own series. Amazingly enough this happens quite often, which is exactly why I never delete photos, always back them up, and continually review old ones. You never know what surprises you're going to find. I catalog my photos to keep them organized and filtered. I use Lightroom for this purpose and I find that it works wonders. You have to keep up on it, but with the help of a regular routine you'll be thanking yourself later.

As soon as I am able to sit down with my computer and CF card after a shoot, I plug in my card reader and start downloading images. Ideally, I am near my external hard drive and can do a back up then and there and forget about it. No matter when I get to it I will back up my photos. Backing up your photos may be the most important step, so don't forget it! I can do this automatically with Adobe Lightroom and kill two birds with one stone on one download. I've preset mine so that all I have to do is plug in my external hard drive and press OK and it'll automatically back up to my selected hard drive. If it's not plugged into my computer Lightroom will remind me. After I get all my photos into Lightroom and backed up on external hard drives, I start to go through and weed out the good from the bad. I use a 'flag' for the ones that draw an initial reaction and I know are good, and a rejection flag for any overexposures or out of focus photos I know I don't want to keep. Then, I go through the flagged photos and narrow it down even further to the best of the best with a rating of five stars. I can filter the photos so that only the flagged photos are showing and develop from there, eventually focusing on the five star images.

When I am satisfied with my selection of "good" photos I start to play around in the digital darkroom. Does the photo tell a better story in black and white? Will it look better cropped? What can I change to express my vision? Aside from correcting exposure, color correcting and removing dust spots I don't like to "correct" too much unless I'm trying to achieve a certain look. The point is to try and capture it in-camera as best you can. Photoshop, Lightroom or iPhoto will only take you so far. Getting an image right in-camera is the best practice and will improve anyone's photography. I try to take that to heart.

Last but not least, I go through my images regularly. If I missed a back up I get it done as soon as I can. If I haven't gone through and edited dust spots, I'll do it. Most importantly, I'll look with a fresh set of eyes at all the captures and if there is a photo I think should be flagged or even starred that isn't I'll do it then. It's amazing what a fresh set of eyes can see. I often find photos that were initially overlooked and wonder why I hadn't flagged them or given them a better status to begin with. The best practice is to review, review, review!

November 04, 2011

Occupy Salt Lake Protests

Nowell lit up his hand-rolled cigarette as he continued to explain his reasoning for protesting outside the Federal Bank Building on State Street and 100 South in Salt Lake City. There's a handful of individuals at this site supporting the 'Occupy' protests around the nation. Nowell stressed that getting the word out was his main purpose and the reason he's been sleeping and protesting at this location for the last two weeks. Cars driving by honked in support, and the occasional passerby stopped with interest. Others are not so enthusiastic about the idea. One man confronted a protester by yelling and throwing his hands around. I thought the tension might rise, but the protester stood his ground with an easy going smile on his face until the man left. These protesters don't seem to be looking for a fight. They just want their voices heard. And as Americans, we all have a right, if not an obligation, to voice our opinions.

I've had to learn, as a photographer, that you have to keep an open mind. It's best, in order to tell the story, to not take sides. Sure, I have my opinions, but I don't think they are best spoken here or getting too wrapped up with my photography. Take these photos as they are. I'd much rather have my photos speak for themselves than for me to try to explain them, and hopefully they are able to do just that.

October 29, 2011

Music: Cold War Kids

Good new bands are hard to find these days. Great bands are even more rare. Cold War Kids is one of those 'great bands' for me. I've listened to them for a few years now and with each new album they continue to impress. They have been one of my top bands to see live and last Thursday they did not disappoint.

Young Man is traveling with Cold War Kids for part of their 2011 tour and they were very impressive as the opening band. You can tell these guys are musically talented, and after listening to some of the stuff off their album, they are just as good, if not better, live.

Lead singer, songwriter and creator of Young Man, Colin Caulfield

Now, onto Cold War Kids. I can't say enough about how amazing they were live. I mean, I love their music anyways, but it was a whole other experience live. Promoting their new album, Mine is Yours, they played a good mixture of old and new, with old favorites like "Saint John" and "Hospital Beds" for the encore. You could tell they love what they do, and they have fun doing it. If you haven't heard of Cold War Kids pick up their new album 'Mine is Yours', you won't regret it.