by admin on August 16, 2010
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Download link: Episode 12
Question #1: I recently watched one of Jerry Ghionis’ videos as you suggested, and I was really surprised to see how much direction *[almost all-posed candid’s of the groom prep].* During your prep shops, I normally tend to give a little direction but just let it happen. What are your thoughts on this?
Dave: That’s an awesome question because Jerry has influenced me a lot in my career. It’s certainly one of those things where I take inspiration, but I’m not a clone by any means, like the technique of slowing things down and setting up the “hero” shots that you want – like, the groom looking really cool. Jerry does this great thing where he turns the body away from the window and has the nose back over the shoulder into the window, creating a really skinny light on the short side of the face and drops the shadow, and making it look killer. And every guy wants to look awesome.
I personally believe that wedding photographers have a responsibility to create beautiful classic images and then do whatever they want outside of that. But I think there are certain shots that every photographer should be able to do well.
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by admin on August 11, 2010
I know! It’s Wednesday. We usually post on Tuesdays.
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Download link: Episode 11
Question #1: As a vendor, what is the best way to work with photographers to get great images (or to ensure that you receive images)?
Dave: From our experience, we do our absolute best to look after other vendor – every vendor. We try to shoot images for their use.
Taylor: It’s photography 101, and often people forget or get too busy, but grab business cards from everyone that you run into. Take a couple cool shots, and upload them to Two Bright Lights, then send them the link and password and they can go download them. It’s great for collaborations and networking with other vendors.
The rest of the transcription lives here
by admin on August 3, 2010
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Download link: Episode 10
Potluck Photo: Episode 10
Question #1: What are some of the best practises when the subject is backlit? (I had a ceremony, and it was at a dock over a lake, and it was tough to get any textures behind the subjects – no flash because they were 50 feet away.)
Dave: I shot yesterday that way at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club, and it was a little challenging. So the best practise I think is expose the skin tones and let happens what happens.
Taylor: I always step back for the wide shot to get everything – expose for the entire scene when you’re shooting wide. But if you’re shooting at 200 mm, just go for the skin tones and sacrifice the background.
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by admin on July 19, 2010
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Download link: Episode 8
Fun and exciting point:
- How much do we want an iPhone 4?
- Going from Av to shooting manual.
- Raw or Jpeg?
- How do you handle finances in the off-season?
- How do you market yourself to higher end weddings without having shot them previously.
Check out the bite size transcription by clicking here
by admin on July 13, 2010
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Download link: Episode 6
Talking points!
- Workshops in Canada,
- Favorite Album Supliers,
- How often do we adjust our pricing,
- Print Advertising
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Download link: Episode 6
Don’t forget to follow the iTunes Feed!
Topics this week!
- Workshops and WPPI
- Skips Summer School
- Best Lenses Under $500
- Getting Uncle Bobs off your back
- Monitor Calibration
Question #1: What are the best ways to learn the craft of photography? Workshops? WPPI?
Dave: I would absolutely swear by going to WPPI at least for a few years until you’re comfortable with what’s happening, and then you can sort of make an educated decision about whether you’re going to do it every year or every other year, etc. It’s great for networking, great to see what’s happening and great to see what’s new with photography technology-wise.
Taylor: I found that Skip Summer School was awesome. It was in Vegas, also at the MGM. It sucks because it is Vegas in August and that means it’s hot, but where it was in the year for me was perfect. I shot a wedding on Saturday, left Sunday, spent until Thursday there and shot a wedding on Friday. And the amount of people I met was fantastic. I didn’t think it benefited me then, but it laid a solid foundation for immersing myself in the industry.
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by admin on June 29, 2010
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Download link: Episode 5
Don’t forget to follow the iTunes Feed!
On this episode!
- High ISO or Flash
- Do you use assistants?
- Outsourcing your editing
- Speedlights or something bigger – like a soft box?
- Guidelines for a complete newbie creating a style?
Transcription!
Question #1 (Shawn): High ISO on shoots instead of flash?
Dave: You’ve got to visualize the outcome you want, and if you want the available light being used, then I’d say you use ISO.
Taylor: Just the depth that high ISO gives you – for more photojournalistic –type stuff, I far prefer cranking the ISO with a little bit of grain. And I’ve never heard my clients say they hate a photo because “it’s a little bit grainy”.
Dave: Charlotte and I crank up the ISO – like during receptions, we shoot 25, 3200 or something like that and bounce the flash through the room. We use reflective light, so that means using the light bounced off backs of chairs or walls.
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by admin on June 22, 2010
Don’t forget to follow the iTunes Feed!
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Download link: Episode 4
We’re giving away some Totally Rad Actions! All you have to do is reply @PotluckPhoto and say ‘You guys should have _______(insert your favorite photographer) on the show!” Or something like that.
We’re going to do the best we can to involve as many of them as possible. We’re just going to be randomly choosing the winner from all the submissions!
If you don’t have Twitter, you can drop a comment in the section below – just make sure you leave an email address in case you win!
On this episode:
- Thoughts on ‘fad-ish’ processing
- Dealing with price shoppers
- Raw vs. sRaw
- What to expect first commercial shoot
- How many images do you provide a wedding client. Lightroom or full Photoshop?
- What lenses would you bring on a destination shoot?
Note: Photographer suggestions can be made through Twitter by mentioning @Potluckphoto or through the actual Potluck Photo comments page.
*Prize: Action Pack by Totally Rad Actions or TRA 2: The Revenge
Question 1 (Debbie Lee): How do you feel about “fad-ish” processing like vintage, wash-out or muted tones?
Answer:
Dave: I’m not so much into the trend, and I prefer to keep things relatively classic in order to prevent cringing in about ten years time.
Taylor: I try not to take anything too far, because after looking back on my old work, I find I tended to over-process with photo shop. Not I try to hit at that decisive moment because when you do, it doesn’t matter what you layer onto the photo.
Dave: I think it’s all good to create a brand for your look of images because otherwise everything would look identical. If you want to look at someone with a very distinct brand of photography, check out Marcus Bell.
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by admin on June 15, 2010
Hey all! Episode 3 is here, and we have an iTunes feed that everyone can now follow! Check it out!
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Download the podcast here: http://www.potluckphoto.com/podcasts/003-potluck-photo.mp3
And don’t forget to pick up our iTunes podcast feed!
Here’s what we’re talking about on this episode
- What’s the best F Stop for flare and solid blurry backgrounds.
- What to do with a screaming baby at a kids shoot. How to calm them down.
- Lifestyle photography. How do you pose things so that they look more candid?
- What software do you use for work flow?
- I have a lot of gear. What gear do you bring on shoots?
Transcription!
Dave: Welcome to the next edition of Potluck Photo. I’m Dave Biesse.
Taylor: And I’m Taylor Jackson, and Potluck Photo is the place where we answer all of your questions submitted by Twitter at @potluckphoto. We cram as many questions photography-related as we can into this little podcast and just kind of go from there.
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