ChileJam » PhotoBlog

HDR Portrait

Michael J — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:40:35 +0000

I was shooting a while back and decided to see what would happen if I tried some High Dynamic Range (HDR) portraits. Well, I have to tell you, on a windy day it’s nearly impossible. With HDR you have to take several shots using different apeture settings so you can capture all of the detail. If something moves in the frame (even a fraction of an inch) you’re kinda hosed. Models have to stay perfectly still.

I took a few portraits. Here’s one that came out OK. I’ll post more later.

Squirrel PhotoBomber

Michael J — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 20:27:48 +0000

Melissa Brandts and her husband stopped to take a photo using their camera’s self-timer while vacationing in Canada. Intrigued by the sounds of the camera, a curious ground squirrel came over to check things out and popped into the frame right at the perfect moment. With a photobomber is a lot cuter (and classier) than the typical culprit, the couple’s photo is not at all ruined — in fact, it’s like it 1000x better.

Visual Angst

Michael J — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:31:36 +0000

The members of the band, Inner Frequency, wanted something different. So we decided to let their inner anger out and have it asault their calmer “real” selves.

Note that Barry, the Guitar Player, on the right side has no double.

Cara Young, Washed Out, Sexy

Michael J — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:50:43 +0000

Just playing with the light a little bit here. Didn’t want to use any reflectors here. Just used the natural light and the wide open apeture of the 300 MM lens to get the very soft background.

Not something that I’d take the time to do in the studio, but very easy outside. And the results are exactly what I needed for the shot.

I Am Nikki Donley

Michael J — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:39:43 +0000

Nikki is one of the first models that I shot using the 300 MM Canon Lens. Needless to say, I was quite happy with the results. So happy, that I’m now shooting most of my headshots with this lens.

Shooting with the 300MM requires a lot of extra “umph”, but the results are worth it.

The Art Of Time

Michael J — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 20:10:52 +0000

This is from a series called “The Art of Time”.

Each of the pieces is a combination of several shots taken over some period of time. The final result will be that a single image should be able to tell a complete story.

This poster was done for a band called Inner Frequency and it was the birth of the concept.

“Surge” – Back

Michael J — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 18:53:03 +0000

This is a the back cover of Surge. All of the members are sticking out of the bus window.

There’s another version of the picture with Cara standing a dress that’s made from the TABS that you find on Coke cans.

Inner Frequency – “Surge” CD Cover

Michael J — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:27:30 +0000

This CD cover was shot in the drummer’s back yard. OK, so how many of us have an old school bus in the back yard? I know I wish that I’d had one when I was a kid.

I placed 2 Canon flash units inside the bus and triggered them with pocket wizards to get the bus insides to glow.

This was just a test shot and it turned out to be the keeper.

Singer In The Sand

Michael J — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:23:07 +0000

Cara Young is the lead singer of a Dallas-based band called Inner Frequency. This shot was taken under the highway in Lewisville, TX. I wanted to shoot in the desert, but travel was out of the question.

The road crews had mountains of sand that they’d dumpped there, so we used it as our back drop.