This is my last weekend of spring break.  I was tired of studying all day, and I needed to get out of the house.  For the first time in a while there was some cloud cover today.  One of the great things about the city of Phoenix is that the skyscrapers are spread out.  It creates some interesting opportunities for photography. This was an interesting angle, that I think is pretty unique for the city.
Anyway, sorry that I haven’t updated this blog much anymore.   There is just so much work for school that I haven’t had a chance in several months to go and explore the Valley of the Sun, Phoenix, Arizona.

I hope to have more chances this summer!

Downtown Phoenix – Black and White is a post from: Phoenix Photography

We arrived early and walked around Heritage Square Park downtown. There were vendors lined the sides and it was much more commercial than anything I had experienced before. It seemed like there was a broad age range represented — even quite a few parents pushing children in strollers. A half an hour before the walk was scheduled to start it only seemed like there were a couple of hundred zombies lurking around the park. By the time the walk started it swelled to what looked like around 1,500 – 2,000 zombies!

For the most part, the crowd seemed to be pretty docile. Some even had trouble staying in character and just chit-chatted as they went along. Like with any big crowd there were a few who took the fun too far and seemed to enjoy scaring unknowing passersby. The spectators who lined up along the walk route were taking pictures, or just enjoying the show. All in all, it seemed like everyone had a great time out.

Many of the costumes were indistinguishable from the next and I wasn’t inspired to take a lot of photos. However, here are a couple of my favorites from the night:

After walking around the entire night, this whole group gets my award for the best costume of the night.

I hope to see you out next year!

Phoenix Zombie Walk is a post from: Phoenix Photography

In a continuation of my last few headshots this one also has a white backdrop. Until recently, I did not have the opportunity to photograph inside, or to have photos with a white backdrop — I photographed outside, on location. At least in the near future photographing inside is a treat for me; however, photographing outside still has a special place in my heart because I can create a unique photo each time then.

With this particular photo my subject was another friend from law school. He has no modeling experience that I know of, but he has a charming and vibrant personality. Like the others in the series I wanted to capture his personality — and yes, law school students do have great personalities! This is a goofy inquisitive face that Ken uses once in a while pondering such seminal cases like Pennoyer v. Neff.

I love photographs that capture the subject’s personality.

Look for more portraits and headshots coming up in the near future!

Phoenix Headshot is a post from: Phoenix Photography

This was the fist time I have been to the Grand Canyon.  Currently, it is the monsoon season there and at least from my experience rain can be experienced on any given day.   During my stay it rained intermittently each day.   Fortunately my rocked it, and withstood the rain like a champ.

While the rain made for less than idea conditions to pitch a tent, it made excellent conditions in which to photograph.  The vastness of the Grand Canyon made it easy to see the rain coming and set up one’s camera just for the right time.  When the rain clouds aren’t overhead, there are often other interesting cloud formations which can help set the stage for some awesome photos.

For more information about usage or purchase of these prints please use the contact form (a link to it can be found at the top of the page) and send me the details about your request.

Grand Canyon Black & White Photos is a post from: Phoenix Photography

This is one of my favorite photos I have taken, simply for the facial expression. The model, Erin Pitcher, just has that look of ‘what did I get myself into posing for a picture.’ It cracked me up! Perhaps equally funny this is a face that Erin says this is a regular part of her facial expression repertoire.

My goal with this headshot was if you didn’t know Erin, then by looking at this picture you would hopefully get to know a little bit about her. Even though she isn’t an actress that I know about, I had a similar goal to what one might have for an actor’s headshot.

This was the first time using my apartment as a makeshift studio (previously I used Michael‘s apartment as the studio). I think it turned out really well, even though it was a little cramped.

What do you think?  Tell me what you think of the headshot.

Phoenix Headshots is a post from: Phoenix Photography

Tonight I had the opportunity to shoot another portrait. It is one of the first times I have had an opportunity to do so while I have been down in Phoenix. Fortunately my friend, Michael Foushee, agreed to pose for me. One thing I really like about portraits is really bringing out a person’s personality in a photo.

Since I have known him Michael has proven to be a warm, insightful and joking person; however, he looks intimidating at first glance. Perhaps it is his confidence that causes people to think that about him, but when one gets to know him they find out there is another side to him. In this particular photo we wanted to accentuate that rough and rugged exterior that he has at times. So he crossed his arms and gave me his best intimidating stare. I think he looks great. His physique really stands out! It was always good to get back into photography again, especially with portraits. I hope to do one or two a month in the future. If you like what you see stop back in the future for more pictures. Also if you want to get a hold of me use the contact form (the link can be found at the top right hand side of the page).

Phoenix Portrait Photography is a post from: Phoenix Photography

The lake/park is pretty well lit and when it reflects off of the water it becomes gorgeous.  The only thing is that the lights are turned on after sun-down, and the lights just add an extra dimension of beauty to it.

I purposely processed this picture in black and white because I am starting a series of photographs entitled “The Valley of the Sun After Dark.”  The Phoenix Metro area is commonly called the Valley of the Sun.  My goal is to start photographing various locations structures, and people around the Phoenix metro area all after the sun goes down.

Tempe Town Lake at Night – The Valley of the Sun After Dark is a post from: Phoenix Photography

Well today I ventured out into the city with my camera in tow to take my first official pictures in Arizona.  One of the places I have heard highly about is Papago Park, which I think is technically in Phoenix but sits at the corners of Phoenix, Tempe and Scottsdale.  The reason why I wanted to visit it is because I read some pretty cool things about it.  Not only is it a park where one can have a picnic lunch or take a hike, but there are also a myriad of other things to do that are housed under its auspices including the Phoenix Zoo, and the Phoenix Botanical Gardens.  The park is huge and probably requires a couple of days to see everything.  So today I just stuck to exploring part of the hiking/picnicking section.

What I wanted to photograph in the park were red sandstone buttes the park is known for.  One characteristic of note about the rock is at one point in one of the individual uprisings a hole in the rock tunnels straight through the rock (not pictured in this photograph).  This naturally hole which eroded away over time and one can climb to the opening.

It is a fantastic park overall.  I highly recommend visiting!
I will post a few more landscape/cityscape photographs until I start networking to photograph portraits.  As always if you are in the Phoenix area and want to pose for a portrait for me then use the contact form located at the top of the page.

Phoenix Photography is a post from: Phoenix Photography

Chess is a long-time hobby of mine, so it is natural that I would want some type of self-portrait including chess.  One of the great things about Denver is that there are some public concrete chess tables on the 16th Street Mall downtown that not only are perfect for games, but work for a pretty unique street portrait as well.

For this photo I strayed a little bit from my strobes that I tend to use for portraits, and I used strictly natural light — the sun — for this picture.  I had thought about using some artificial lighting, I had some in my car, but eventually decided against it.   Not only did I want a change as I feel there is something special about well-done natural light photos, also I didn’t want my lights sitting out in the middle of downtown while I was trying to play both the model and the photographer. At least in this photo, I think the natural light gave it some depth where the light hit the top of my head and on my nose.

I really like this street portrait.  It draws attention to me in positive and interesting ways that help the viewer get to know about me via the photo.

One of my inspirations for self-portraits goes by the name The Divine Emily Fine.  I never thought much of self-portraits until I saw her work, which is unique because she only photographs self-portraits.  Well, that is the only thing I have seen her photograph.  Maybe on her Facebook she has pictures of her friends and family, I don’t know.  Consisting of mainly headshots I have always been impressed with the vision of her photos and the variety of styles she captures.  If you get a chance go check out her portfolio.  It is worth the time.

I plan on continuing my self-portraits in addition to my portraits of models when I move to Phoenix.  Stay tuned for more!

Street Chess Portrait is a post from: Phoenix Photography

It has been a while since I have seen Mike workout, but I remember that his best lift was the deadlift. What better way to take a portrait of him in the gym than doing his best lift, the deadlift?  So he performed a set of deadlifts on top of an Olympic platform with me taking photos throughout.  Once he set his tunes on his mp3 player he was set and went through ten reps without missing a beat.  As a quick aside he has monster concentration because I was photographing with a flash and to stay fully concentrated on the lift while the flash is going off is just on another level.

To get the shot I had to be a little creative with where I was standing.  The room wasn’t very wide at all.  If I stood trying to find an angle through the equipment to take a photo my back would be against the wall, and I would not be able to take the portrait in a landscape format.  I did what I thought would get the best picture — I headed for higher ground!  Literally, I climbed to the top of the squat rack behind me and stationed a good six or seven feet above the ground, I had a great view for the shot.

The picture above was my favorite from the photoshoot.  I think it shows the intensity and the strength of Mike’s personality.  Highlighting the personality is always the first goal of mine in portrait photography.

I really like the photo.   What do you think?

Also, if you live in Phoenix and have an awesome idea for a portrait and you want to model for me then send me a message via the contact form.  The link to the contact form can be seen at the top of the page.

Phoenix Fitness Portrait is a post from: Phoenix Photography