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).

Evolution and Religion

I've always loved the Christmas lights at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. It really sets the mood for Christmastime for me. It's been a while since I've gone to photograph the temple in downtown Salt Lake City, but I've been excited to ever since I got my tilt shift lens. I've had some of these photos in mind for a while. It's always good to see them actually come to life. Even if I feel like I've shot this location a thousand times, I still had ideas to change it up and create something new. Conditions are always changing. Our style is always changing. Or better yet, evolving. I look back at some of the photos I've taken, some only months apart, and realize how much I've grown as a photographer. It makes me excited about my future and where I will be able to go with my vision. I just hope I can relay the ideas in my head to actuality and continue to progress. 

Moonset

One of my first landscape shots with the Canon 5D Mark II.  Moonset over the Oquirrh Mountains.  

Day Full of Photography

I love the days that begin and end with photography.  Yesterday was one of those days.  I got up extra early to make it to Park City before sunrise.  In such a photogenic setting and just off the main road, the Park City barn has been photographed more than a few times.  I was hoping for some unique light so I could come away with something different.  

I like to think of the photo canvas as split up into thirds.  Not only two dimensionally, but three dimensionally as well.  I know, a photograph is only two dimensional, but hear me out.  To create an image with real depth and visual interest, the photographer must make it seem three dimensional.  How do you do that with a medium that is obviously two dimensional?  Fake it.  Use leading lines, create layers, get a different perspective.  Every photo I take, I want it to feel like you are there.  Or to feel like you want to go there.  Which is why I try to create depth in every photograph.  Now, back to the photograph being split up into thirds.  The rule of thirds is an elementary rule in photography and essentially places your main subject in a more pleasing location other than just smack in the middle.*  The rule of thirds is basically this; split your image into thirds and place the main subject or horizon lines in the intersecting thirds.  This is a great rule and should be second nature to any photographer, but what if we took it to the next step?  What if the photo was actually a cube?  If you split your image’s depth into thirds what do you get?  A foreground, a middle-ground and a background.  Placing visually interesting objects in these thirds will create depth, and how you place them will either make it interesting or distracting.  The idea of creating a cube instead of a flat plane will improve your photography tenfold.  Now, It’s up to you in how you place objects within this cube. 

In my photo below, the cattails are my foreground and out of focus for a reason as I don’t want them to distract from the main subject, the middle-ground, the barn, is my main focus, and the mountains are my background.  With an aperture of 2.8 I wanted the focus to stay on the barn and kind of soften every other layer in the photo (ie. the mountains and the cattails).  I used my 70-200mm lens to compress the landscape a bit and make it feel like the mountains were right up against the barn.  

Back in Salt Lake I was able to catch sunset in the city.  I went up to a favorite location of mine to take photos of the City Council Building.  I try to pre-visualize what kind of photos I want to take in certain locations and I certainly had some ideas of what I was looking for here.  The sky was working again for me and I was able to come away with the images I’ve had in my head.  Gotta love a day full of successful photography! 

*This rule, and every other rule for that matter, is really only a guideline (as Captain Barbossa would say).  So, learn the rules and then learn how and when to break them.

Matted Prints

I got some of my prints matted today for the Nature Photography Competition and Exhibition at the M.L. Bean Life Science Museum at Brigham Young University.  I was in a bit of a crisis to get them matted last minute (due to my reading the photo requirements wrong) and was saved by Travis at Tanner Frames located in downtown Salt Lake City.  Travis was nice enough to let me photograph the whole process as we talked about art and politics.  I ran them down to the museum and I couldn't have been happier with the finished product.  They looked incredible and I can't wait to see them up on the wall.  The exhibit will run from February 3rd to March 5th, 2012.  I will be there this Friday for the reception at 7pm, so hopefully I'll see you there!  And if you need any framing or matting done, give Travis a visit.

Lunar Eclipse

My alarm woke me at 5:30 am this morning and I had to wonder, 'Why in the world is my alarm going off on a Saturday?!'  Then I realized, I had done this to myself.  It's a funny thing what I'm willing to do for photography.  There was a lunar eclipse this morning and Salt Lake City got a pretty great show.  I couldn't have asked for any better conditions:  Clear skies, a setting moon, and a sunrise to light the foreground, not to mention a perfect scene from a nearby park.  Besides my toes being so cold they were going numb, it was an amazing morning.  

Time Lapse

I've been experimenting with time-lapse videos lately and wanted to share a combination of them in which I took in and around Salt Lake City.

I've really enjoyed making these time-lapse videos.  The possibilities seem endless.  So bear with me and enjoy!

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.

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.

Lead Singer Nathan Willitt

Guitarist Jonnie Russell

Bassist Matt Maust

Nathan Willitt with Drummer Matt Aveiro

Location: Little Cottonwood

A 30-minute drive from the heart of Salt Lake City and you're in the great Wasatch Mountains.  The light and the clouds were amazing this last week and the dusting of snow made the scene even more dramatic.  I struggled to reduce flare on some of the most dramatic light coming directly from the sun.  With the help of a sign in the Alta parking lot and cupping my hand around the lens I blocked the sun enough to get the beams of light coming through the clouds.  The mountains were back lit and light was flooding through the low clouds.  I composed my shot as best I could with as little flare as possible and it turned out to be one of my favorite shots.  

Photo Essay: Occupy Wall Street/SLC

Two men hold signs in support of Occupy Wall Street in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Tents set up in Pioneer Park for the Occupy Wall Street protestors.  Salt Lake City, Utah.

Unknown woman holds a sign at a rally for Occupy Wall Street.

Peaceful protestors gather to hear a young speaker in support of Occupy Wall Street. 

Unnamed man holds a sign in support of Occupy Wall Street.

Unknown woman writes out a sign for the Occupy Wall Street protests in Pioneer Park, Salt Lake City, Utah.

A band from Tennessee plays to support the protestors in Pioneer Park Salt Lake City, Utah.

Great light tonight in the SLC.  The first snow of the season came last night and dusted the mountains just enough to add some drama.  The air is turning crisp and the leaves have turned.  It's a great time of year for photography.  I've enjoyed every chance to get to the mountains and shoot.  I was about to go right back up when I though the light and the time I had was best used for a shot in the city.  A previous shoot had me familiar with a great spot so I returned to capture the best light.  I thought I was too late as the sun was setting quickly, but made it just in time for the sun to peak through the clouds and light up the skyline.  The magic light was gone in minutes.  

Documentary: Carnival

I've read different articles in photo magazines about how carnivals and fairs are great places to photograph, but never really sought them out.  Last week I went to the Utah State Fair to see what all the fuss was about.  Initially, I thought the rides at dusk with slow shutter speeds was going to be the recipe for the night (which it partly was), but I found myself drawn to the small vendors and everyday carnies even more.  The first guy I spoke to was running a 100 shots for 5 bucks game.  Shoot out the middle of your target and you get to take home a giant stuffed Scooby.  I have to say I was tempted.  I gracefully declined but asked if I could take his photo.  He straitened up, took off his hat, combed his hair and smiled.  He told me he felt like a picture gave a person a kind of immortality, as a photo can last a whole lot longer than we can.  This stuck with me the rest of the night and I couldn’t help but thinking he was right.  He reminded me of the whole reason any of us really start taking photos.  For myself it was to document.  Every photo I take for one reason or another is to document.  And really that's what any of us are really doing when we take a photograph.  I took his photo proudly, hoping I had done him justice even if I had only spoken with him for a moment.  He tried one last time to get me to play his game but the sun was setting and pictures were waiting to be taken.  

Lightning Over Salt Lake

I have wanted to get a shot like this for some time.  It seemed every time I tried I was too late, or in the wrong spot.  A few Sunday's ago the west sky was full of lightning and I knew it was the perfect time for some shots.  I wanted to add more elements to the scene instead of just taking a picture of lightning so I went to a viewpoint I had scoped out some time before and composed as best I could for the unpredictable lightning.  It may seem daunting at first, but capturing lightning is actually pretty easy once you know how.  So I put together some tips below.

Capturing Lightning:

1. Use a Tripod.  This is a must for the length of time the shutter will be open.  To reduce any movement during the long shutter speed here are some other tips you should keep in mind*:
1. Turn off IS (Image Stabilization).  If you have your camera on a tripod it is still going to try to compensate for hand holding and make your image a little blurry.
2. Enable Mirror Lock on your camera.  Read the manual or search in your menu to find this.  One shutter click flips the mirror up inside the camera before taking the shot and a second shutter click will take the shot. 
3. Use a Shutter Release Cable.  Touching the camera will produce camera shake.
4. Use a low ISO.
2. Use a longer shutter speed.  Lightning comes and goes quickly, so make it easy on yourself, use a slow shutter speed and any time lightning strikes while your shutter is open (say during a 15 second stretch like the photo above) will show up on the sensor, and on your photo.
3. Find an interesting foreground/subject and work with the lightning around it.  It’s just a shot of lightning if there is nothing else interesting in the photo.
4. Take lots and lots of shots.  You’re not going to get it the first time.  Keep at it.  Find the best (safest) place and shoot away!

*These tips should be practiced any time you use a tripod.