Henry 6 Months

Posted on by Timothy Gray

Did a quick baby portrait studio session the other day.  Henry is a happy, adorable six month old who loves to laugh.  He was pretty comfortable in the studio and enjoyed being under the big light.  He was genuinely curious about the big camera, but his mommy stood behind me while I worked and kept him happy.  What a cutie!

For this shoot I used a simple white backdrop. Tip: busy backgrounds and babies NEVER work.  Ever.  I chose to use Kodak’s new darling, Ektar 100 color negative film, mostly for its wide latitude, high sharpness, and low grain.  My camera of choice was the amazing Mamiya RB67 Pro-SD outfitted with the 90mm K/L lens.  Lighting was provided by a single Elinchrom 500 watt BXRi strobe fitted with an Elinchrom Rotalux 27×27 softbox (I used the inner baffle here, too!), triggered by an Elinchrom Skyport EL wireless system.  Exposure was f/11 @ 1/400s, confirmed pre-exposure by the Sekonic L-358 light meter with Lumisphere.

Some of you are probably scratching your heads wondering why in this age of digital would a “pro photographer” be using film?  Well, let’s start off with the basics.  Medium format film provides a much larger negative than 35mm digital cameras.  A larger negative means higher quality, more detailed images, which makes for easier and bigger enlargements, and less time spent fixing color and other issues in post.

So what kind of detail can you expect when you book a session with me?  Check out these 100% crops from the above image.

The images speak for themselves.  These are remarkable in their ability to capture even the finest details.  Every eyelash, every stitch in the jeans, even the twinkle in baby’s eye is rendered beautifully.

So what are you waiting for?  Give me a call and book your baby for a portrait session today!

The New Year Brings With It New Opportunities

Posted on by Timothy Gray
Beginnings by Timothy Gray

New Beginnings, 2012

2011 went out with a whimper and so far, 2012 has been fairly quiet.  I’ve spent some much needed downtime with family, including my baby boy, and close friends (you know who you are).  Hours were spent reflecting on last year, of opportunities gained (and lost) and the past few weeks have been devoted to re-focusing my vision for what this photography business will look like in the new year.

I will continue to offer high resolution film+digital portrait sessions geared towards actors, musicians, models, and the like, and will reach out to business owners, executives and young professionals looking for a high quality image at a reasonable price.  I may even dip my toes into the commercial end of shooting, but for now, my goal is to capture more faces and places than I did in 2012, and approach each new client as if they were my first and last.  To schedule a session or for more information, call the studio.

For the budding photographer looking to take their photography to the next level, I will be offering personalized 1-on-1 photographic training beginning in the Spring.  Students will go beyond the basics offered by local schools and delve deeper into what makes a compelling image. and how to achieve consistent results.  This won’t be your average “Digital 101″ class.  Expect great things.  Email us for more details.

I plan to continue offering my excellent and affordable film scanning and archival pigment printing services, and build upon the success of those business units by adding editing, retouching, monitor calibration and custom ICC printer profiles for both new and established clients.  The monitor calibration service will be performed onsite at your location and be offered both as a one-time service and as an annual monitor maintenance package.  Contact us for more details.

That’s it for now.  Happy shooting!

TG

 

Film Ain’t Dead So Stop Your Bitching

Posted on by Timothy Gray
Storm Clouds Over Lake Michigan by Timothy Gray

Storm Clouds Over Lake Michigan

It’s hard for me to imagine a world without film.  There is a quality to the medium which cannot be matched digitally.  No matter how good software gets, or how much sensor designs improve, there will always be, in my mind, a purpose and a place for film-based photography.  And no, I’m not talking about fine art photography or some other such niche.  Commercial photography could really use a kick in the teeth and a return to a more honest approach to the craft.

The heavily airbrushed, HDR, photo-illustrative style that permeates modern advertising campaigns has been so completely overdone it makes the entire industry suspect of having run out of original ideas.  What we need is less post-processing, fewer plug-ins and shock treatment filter effects, and a return to something which resembles reality. And film offers just that.  A healthy does of much needed reality.

What the hell is a “digital negative” supposed to look like, anyways?!  Flat, lifeless, and blah, but positive?  No thanks.  Give me a well exposed color negative, or, better yet, color slide anyday.  At least with the latter you know what you got – the color, contrast, saturation…everything has been decided for you by color scientists who know a metric shit ton more about imaging than you will ever figure out reading Scott Kelby’s latest warmed over rehash of Photoshop Tips & Tricks.

And for God’s sake, the next person who spews forth on a forum about the “dynamic range of X camera” is going to get kicked in the teeth by yours truly.  Measurement websites (I’m looking at you DxO!) are fucking pointless! You want dynamic range?  Hike a Pentax K1000 loaded with Velvia up into the Sierra backcountry and shoot golden hour.  You’ll be cured of your anxiety over how many “stops” of “dynamic range” your camera does or doesn’t have.

Kodak may have one foot in the grave. So what? Fuck’em.  They haven’t been able to figure out how to market their products for years.  There’s still Arista, Adox, Fuji, Efke, Foma, Ilford, Kentmere and Rollei. And I’m pretty sure if EK goes the way of the dinosaur, at least ONE of these capable companies will step up to fill the void.  Impossible Project anyone?  So stop worrying about what may or may not happen to film.  Get off your ass, grab your camera and as much film as you can shove in your pockets, and go out and shoot.

TG

 

The End of Warm Days

Posted on by Timothy Gray
Turkey Run State Park photo by Timothy Gray

Turkey Run State Park, Indiana

Cowles Bog Trail photo by Timothy Gray

Cowles Bog Trail, Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

As the seasons change from Fall to Winter, I’m reminded of just how important a role daylight plays in both my photography and daily life.

I’m solar powered, convinced of it.  When the temps dip below 40° and the mostly sunny days turn into mostly cloudy ones, more than my color palette changes.  It’s harder to get out of bed in the morning.  It’s harder to get motivated to get out and shoot.  Shoot what?  The barren trees and brown grass?  Seeking out color becomes a chore, and a difficult one at that.

This in between time leaves me yearning for the warmth of Summer and the brilliant color of Fall.