Chris Taylor's TD&P Blog

Click on the image to the left to launch a gallery.

Tonight, I played around with creating a slideshow in Lightroom and making that slideshow launch within the shadowbox. These are going to be implemented more on my blog once I get a more streamlined approach.

In the meantime, enjoy the few photos that are being used as a test.

Until next time…

Trying out a new plugin that essentially does the same as the lightbox plugin I installed except this one has more available customization. This one is Shadowbox JS. Let’s see how it works…

I like the new feature of allowing you to advance through the photos in a post without having to close each individual image. That alone is cool. I will try it out more once I start implementing video.

Speaking of video, I’m looking for someone to shoot some videos on the next shoot that I do. I think it will add some dynamics to what we are doing and will give people an understanding of how sessions can be.

I’m also playing with a feature in Photoshop CS4 called “zoomify.” I’ve seen some cool stuff done with this and hope to be able to use it sometime in the near future. Gives me a reason to go out and shoot some panoramas!

Until next time…

I updated some of the features of the site tonight as well as adding more info. The links at the top of this page “Who is TD&P” and the “Third Hand Photography” have been updated.

Feel free to browse around and take a look at the new information added.

I’ll be posting more images later this week.

Until next time…

My cousin Roxanne needed some photos of her daughter this last weekend. Roxanne’s agent is putting some stuff together to try and get Gabby into some ads for Forever 21.

Roxanne needed the session done fairly quick & processed even quicker so they could head up to L.A. this week. So I packed up the strobes and headed out for the session. Luckily, their living room is quite spacious so we were able to shoot in the house. I haven’t done many “clamshell” lighting setups so I figured this would be a good time to try it out set it up. Setup was fairly quick and I like the lighting. Processing included mainly taking care of the stray hairs that were made even more prevalent from the hair light. I also lightened up the eyes a bit to bring them out a little more.

Thanks to Rob for showing up to help out and provide the backgrounds. He was looking pretty haggard from Vegas and I’m surprised glad he showed up.

Get it right in camera

These 3/4 shots were the toughest part of the session. Why??? ‘Cause I am not comfortable posing hands. It’s another thing I plan on studying more and working with ’cause it is such a pain in the ass for me. The background was also creased and that took the longest time to edit in post. I ended up blurring the image and then created a layer mask to smooth out the creases. I didn’t realize how time consuming it was until I looked at the clock and realized it was 3a.m. Whew! Lesson learned in why getting it right at the camera is a time saver. I could’ve moved her farther away from the background but that would have made sense. I’m not too bright sometimes. Oh well. Lesson learned.

Things learned from this session:

Learn to pose hands
Creases are not fun to fix in PS
Our kids are growing up faster than we think

Thanks, Gabby & Roxanne for a fun session. Thanks also for your patience. I hope you enjoy the images and good luck in L.A. this week.

Until next time…

I subscribed to Scott Kelby’s Online training earlier this month and the lessons I have watched so far are proving that the cost is worth the knowledge gained. I just finished watching RC’s (Rafael Concepcion) Wordpress training videos and thought I would play around with one of the plugins he mentioned.

The Lightbox 2 plugin adds a nice feature to images. You can click on the image and it will bring it up in the center of screen and overlay a darker mask over the rest of the blog. It makes it easier on the eyes to view an image this way so outside influences (other colors, text, etc…) are mitigated.

You can see the plugin in action by clicking on the image below in this post as well as the first two images in the Bridal Session post.

(I installed Lightbox 2 version 2.0.2. The new version seemed to be flaky so I “downgraded” to an earlier version that works).

Let me know what you think. I’m diggin’ it so far.

I will be posting some images later this week. I need to get some photos sent out to the lab for printing before posting them though. I gotz deadlines to meet.

Until next time…

I had the pleasure of meeting and working with Natalia Zanko on a shoot that Rob coordinated. It was nice being able to shoot without pressure so we could slow down and really work on various aspects of our photography. I’ve been working on posing lately. I get caught in the moment a lot on shoots and will just kinda let the shoot go wherever it may go.

Natalia was great to work with. She schooled me up on a little bit about Russia while Rob was playing with the off-camera flash setups he was doing. All in all, I think we both came away with some really cool shots. Enjoy some images from the shoot.

Thanks Natalia for a fun shoot.

Until next time…

A friend of mine posed a question on Facebook about what a friend of her’s should buy for her photography so I thought I would put together a post that might give some insight to new photographers.

I shoot quite a bit of things. I don’t necessarily have a specialty; I kinda just shoot which interests me which is portraits, weddings, and products. I was one of those that when started, bought a shit load of gear and then didn’t use half of what I purchased. I still have some stuff sitting in boxes in the closet just in case I need it. I’m one of those that has the mentality, “It’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.” Unfortunately, photography is not cheap and you can get stuck with debt on stuff that doesn’t suit your shooting style or photographic needs.

The following details what I have, the percentage I use it, and the gear that is on the list of “want to have.”

Gear Owned                        Use                                                                         Percent Used

Canon 20D                          Main Camera                                                             100%

Canon Digital Rebel            2nd camera                                                                 20%

580EX II                             Hot Shoe Flash                                                             20%

Gel kits                              Light conversion                                                          75%

70-200mm f/2.8 IS             Portraits / Weddings                                                   80%

24-70mm f/2.8                   Ports / Wed / Prod                                                     100%

85mm f/1.8                        Portraits / Weddings                                                    20%

50mm f/1.8                        Products                                                                       10%

Polarizing Filter                   Lens Filter                                                                      5%

C-Stand (full)                       Light stand (more versatile than typical stand)             20%

White Balance card               Exposure / Custom White Balance                               75%

Panel frame                          Frame for diffusion / reflector pane                           90%

Diffusion panel (4×8)         Softening harsh light on daytime shoots                          90%

White panel (4×8)                           Reflecting light                                                 50%

Black panel (4×8)                            Subtracts light / gobo                                       50%

Med sized gold disc                         Reflecting light                                                 25%

Med sized diff disc                          Softens harsh light                                           25%

Umbrella                                         Spreads / softens light                                     5%

Travelite kit (QTY 1 750W)              Portrait light / Product shoots                          25%

Novatron (1 350W & 1 500W)          Portrait light                                                     10%

Light stands (3)                              Standard stands                                                20%

40×30 Softbox (1)                            Portraits / Products                                          75%

56×14 Softbox (2)                            Hair Light / Rim Light                                      10%

16×20 Softbox (1)                            Portraits                                                          10%

Travelite Grid Kit                             Controls light spill                                             5%

Panel stands (3)                                Hold reflector / diffuser                                  5%

That about covers the gear I have. The % of use is up to this point. For 2010, I will be putting certain items to more use. The C-stand is going to start making it’s way to more shoots. It’s a little bit heavy but its versatility is worth it.

The gold reflector is good for late afternoon shoots. It’s very bright though so I use it mainly for the intimate type shots where the subjects eyes are closed.

The Travelite light and the Novatrons are great lights. There are a few issues with these:

You need a considerable amount of space to use them.

In order to power them on location, you need power packs

Once used, you should let the lights cool down before moving them or you can shorten the life of the lamp(s)

I have been moving towards a more mobile approach:

Because of this, I am looking to get some more hot shoe flashes for my location work:

There are a couple reasons I want to get more hot shoes:

Power- I’m not talking flash power because the 750W light is a powerful bastard. I’m talking AA batteries vs. wall / power pack power. I really don’t feel like spending the money on decent power packs or lugging them around while walking around Balboa Park or the beach.

Mobility- We will try out about 5 different spots on a shoot and we may walk 250 feet between spots. It’s a lot easier to move a hot shoe flash / stand combo than to move the bigger lights and packs. Don’t forget about moving around the hot bulb on the bigger lights.

I am also planning on purchasing some Justin Clamps this year as well. They are definitely worth the money. We have used them on fences, car trunks, etc… The versatility of these clamps is insane.

Pocket Wizards are in the list of things to buy this year. They have actually been on my list for a long time (2 years) but that’s another point. I’m looking to get the TTL versions of these considering they are not much more than the regular PW’s.

The 430EX II hot shoe is probably my next purchase. These make for great slave flashes and will pay for themselves after a few shoots.

I will start taking more shots of the stuff in use so you can get an idea of how we are using it and why we use it. If anyone has any questions or wants more insight on certain pieces of gear, feel free to leave comments and I will do my best to give you the answers you are looking for.

Until next time…

The family and I were taking Jake to get some clothes with his Christmas money and to hopefully find Jayden a replacement Brobie (yo Gabba Gabba). When we came out of Tilly’s, the sky was absolutely stunning. I just remember walking out going “Whoa.” I pulled out the camera and got a few frames while the sun was setting.I realized my white balance was off on the first one and then made a quick adjustment for the second photo.

Until next time…

I’m not going to be doing too much reflecting on 2009. I will start the new year with a post though since I haven’t posted in a while.

I have been working with Rob a lot. He has been getting us a bump in portrait sessions. During these shoots, we bounce ideas off each other but I am mainly his lighting assistant. I’m contemplating offering some of my services to some other local photogs as well if they need it. It takes a lot of strain off the photog when he/she can tell their Voice Activated Light (VAL) to “do this” and “do that” instead of having to leave their position to do what I am capable of doing. The other cool thing with being a VAL for Rob is that he can have the model/subject move and I can keep up with their movements so the lighting stays “close to the same.” I have been reading a lot from Joe McNally’s book, “The Hot Shoe Diaries.” That book has so much info in it and has bitten a new bug in my arse.

I plan on gaining about 50 pounds this year since everyone else wants to get thinner.

I plan on starting to advertise around San Diego to drum up more business. Financials weren’t in order last year so advertising was out of the question. That will change this year.

I also plan on taking more pix of Jake. I had to give him a break since he was my model for about two years. I think he got burned out on that but I think I can get him back in the groove.

I also plan on doing more product shoots for work so I can build up that portfolio.

Starting off the new year will be a post of my boy. He was chillin’ out in the chair tonight playing with his new iPod Touch so I grabbed the flash and started playin’. This is what I got.

Until next time…

What kind of boring title is that? It’s late and I didn’t want to spend 30 minutes coming up with a cool title for this. I would rather spend the time getting the post up so let’s go.

It was time to bring out the lights tonight. I haven’t shot with my strobes in sometime and I have been reading this book by Joe McNally. Needless to say, it has sparked some fire under my arse to get my lights out.

The first step I took was setting up the rim light. Actually, the first step was dusting off the thick layer of dust that had accumulated on my strobes that are setup for product shots in the sunroom. I want to start by saying that I did not use my light meter to setup any of these. It was all done by look and feel. I probably could’ve saved about 30 exposures combined but I wanted to become one with the lights. As you can see from the shot below, this was a step by step process for purposes of this tutorial (the crap in the background will disappear soon). This one was shot at ISO 200; 1/200th @ f10.

I planned on shooting the whole guitar so I backed up to get the full shot. Was I surprised. I wasn’t expecting the nuclear result I got below.

And then there was light. To solve this issue, I placed a 2′ x 3′ black foamcore board to block the light from flaring up the lens. This is normally referred to as a GOBO (go between) or a flag. You will see the GOBO in the lower right hand corner of the next shot. Once the GOBO was in place, I was able to move on.

With the GOBO in place, I also played around with the rim light power and the position of the rim light to keep light from spilling onto the background. The next shot was taken at ISO 200; 1/200th @ f18.

Now I’m getting somewhere. It’s starting to come to life. Now it’s time to start adding the main light. I’ve read and watched demos about “feathering the light.” I rotated the main light head until the outer edge of the light was raking across the guitar. I didn’t want to hit the guitar straight on with light. I wanted to have a subtle gradient of light feathering off of the body. My main light has a grid on it which allows you to control the light rays a lot better than just bare bulb flash. They can also help with lens flare as you will see towards the end of this writeup. This next shot was taken at ISO 200; 1/200th @ f13 as are the remaining shots.

The next step was to get rid of the eye sore in the background. I used some standard “A” clamps I bought from Lowe’s to hang the backdrop which is this velveteen material. I need to get a wider piece ’cause this one just ain’t wide enough. Notice the GOBO again in the frame blocking that crazy ass lens flare.

That looks a lot better. The next step was to diffuse those nasty highlights coming from the rim light hitting the curved surface of the guitar body. Those are naaaaaaaasty but was an easy fix once I got my flip flops on to head out to the garage to grab my diffuser disc. The diffuser basically spreads out the light in a random way that breaks up the “hardness” of the light and makes it softer. You will notice the highlights are now rimming the body nicely.

The only difference between the shot above and the final image posted at the beginning of this post is the burgundy curtain was turned black in the final image. All of these setup shots were imported into Lightroom and then re-sized in Photoshop. No other manipulation was done. No sir. No actions, no love. Just me and my gear. The next few shots below show the light positions and some helpful hints. Not only will these hopefully be helpful to you, it also allows me to document my setups for future shoots. They will also show you what happens when you put that grid on your light. Pretty crazy how these bad dogs work. They also show me that I need a studio if I want to get more lights involved.

Well I hope you enjoyed this demo. I always appreciate it when people put their demos up to learn from. And a big thanks to Joe McNally for kicking me in the butt.

Until next time…