Family Photos

I was very fortunate to be able to use my friend's studio to take the Coon/Burke portraits. My friend, Robert Eng, is a very good friend of mine and he rents out this studio for his photography. I have never used a studio before and learned a lot in terms of lighting and the settings on my D80. I really need to upgrade some parts on my camera and need new lenses.

I was nervous because well, I had the camera in my hands and I was the newbie. Robert helped me try to figure out the correct equipment, but of course left it to me to teach myself the correct settings on my camera. I wish I could have visited the studio beforehand, but of course time would not permit such a thing. I had used 4 types of different lighting, a black and a white background, and one of Robert's lenses.

Originally my idea was to only take the Coon's photos, due to my limited ability and of course time, but the Burkes were invited by Jorel so I had to make due. I think I would have preferred smaller groups of people because I think my nerves got the best of me as well as the heat in the room. So I took the best I could with my limited abilities and got some good shots out of the night. The Coons consisted of: Ron, Maria, Joel, Josh, Jorel, Kayci and Marcus; the Burkes: John and Tonya. I think with the amount of people in one photo, the background was too narrow and i couldn't quite fit them all.

I regret that my pictures didn't come out as I had hoped in terms of clarity, but we can make due with what I got and print them out. Also, Adobe Photoshop CS4 will help out a lot. I am not done editing them, I haven't even started, but I will get them up. I am my biggest criticizer and I hope that they don't look as bad as I perceive them as. I had a fun time with the two families, we got to go and eat at Sonomoa Chicken Coop after the photo shoot, I think that was my favorite part of the night.

As always I will promise to post photos soon. I need to get my Picasa updated and upload my photos there.

All in good time, as I always say.