Shine Your Light or Moody Blue

Senior year in high school is exciting and an important time in life to remember down the road.  What better way to preserve those memories than with fine art custom portraits.

For Caitlin, we wanted to capture her personality as well as her artistic interests in music and drawing.  

 

We used a combination of dramatic lighting and posing to create timeless images capturing her essence.  

Blue background gels and fog enhanced the mood to highlight Caitlin's passion for music.

A relaxed atmosphere allowed Caitlin to be herself and let her personality shine resulting in a wide range of beautiful expressions. 
 





















Enjoy the day,
George

A Budding New Photography Assistant

Finding good help is a challenge, especially a good photography assistant.  During a recent portrait session, the always delightful Eli explored a dual role of photography subject

and photography assistant. 

He was quite adept at setting up the tripod,

as well as working the speedlight.











He also tried his hand at art direction for the shoot,

which led to a well deserved break for some playing.

I was able to convince Eli to spend a few moments in front of the camera with his brother Noah, and I'll share the results with you in another post.

Enjoy the day.
George

Isn't She Amazing?

Madelynn was in our studio for a portrait session and had a presence that was, honest, embracing, and remarkable.  We so loved getting to know her and her family and playing with her on the set.  Six months is such a great age for a portrait as it captures the transformation of a child from crawling to sitting by herself.  And along with that comes a new found confidence.

The first thing that we do is create an environment that is pleasing to the senses with music and soft lighting and allow the child to explore the studio so that they feel at home quickly.

 

We get down on their level.  Not only to capture the right angle, but to help create a playful environment so the child is at ease and having fun.

 

We start out with a "pose" and then let things happen, and capture the moment. Using a broad directional light source allows us to follow the child across the set. When Madelynn went to push herself up, she created a "classic pose."  You need to be quick on the trigger so that you don't miss anything.

As Madelynn started to get a little tired, we changed things up and she was very excited to get a change of clothes and play with a feather boa.

Children make such great portrait subjects as they are "who they are" and give you unrehearsed expressions aka "giving it up to the camera."  We can learn a lot from our children.

Madelynn and her family were great fun to work with. 

Enjoy the day,
George

Unique Artwork by Richard DeWalt

The works of a talented Acworth, Georgia artist was the subject of a recent commercial photo shoot in our studio.  Our goal was to present true likenesses of the pieces while accentuating the vivid colors and dimensional qualities with subtle lighting, enabling the artist to utilize photographic images to preview and market his works.

Richard DeWalt creatively incorporates recycled materials and vivid colors into three dimensional wall and table mixed-media pieces in a seemingly whimsical style that empathize with the human spirit in the contemporary world.  Here are a few samples of Richard's extraordinary works that appear in local art shows.  It was a delight to experience these and the artist's perspective up close and personal during the photographic process. 

The below 36" tall wood carving entitled "Jonah and the Whale" is a hand-carved and painted sculptural piece depicting a Jonah figure in a contemporary fashion wearing a suit and tie.  The artist suggests the Great Fish may be viewed as a metaphor for Government, Religion, Big Business – pick your poison.

An "Untitled" mix media wall piece 36" x 18" x 3" combines wood and pottery with recycled shipping pallets and other materials into thought provoking imagery from different cultures including the raven, an outstretched hand, a heart, and a key.

Natural tree branch stripped of bark, sealed, and then enhanced with delightful hand-carved leaves and birds painted in a folk art style.  Pieces range in size from 2’ to 8’ long with varying numbers of leaves and birds.  A three dimensional eye-catching addition to any wall.

A whimsical hand-carved and painted sculptural piece.  Intended to bring a smile to your face – there’s a cat involved and nothing dies!  A 20" x 14" x 6" wood carving table piece – Cat with Flower/Butterfly.

“Forgive Them” - a thought provoking piece depicting a Jesus figure on a cross against a backdrop of greed, avarice, and hate.  Does the crucifixion of goodness never end?  The 14" x 32" x 3" wall piece includes a frame made from recycled shipping pallets and other recycled materials.

At first blush,  a delightful string of cute wood carved, painted fish ranging in sizes from little to big.  In reality, it is a “fish eat fish” world where the big guy always finishes on top - titled "Hostile Takeover."   The frame on this 30" x 26" x 3" wall piece is made from recycled shipping pallets.

A whimsical contemporary take on African tribal masks.  Wood and metal wall piece 13" x 24" x 2."

We enjoyed working with Richard and it is especially fun collaborating with a fellow artist. If you would like to contact the Richard to learn more about his artwork, he can be reached at: treetoart@gmail.com or at 404.680.1698.

 

Have a great day!

George

Run For The Rescues

The Georgia  GA SPCA Run For The Rescues took place this past Saturday.  The Georgia SPCA is dedicated to implementing successful adoption programs, offering low cost spay/neuter services to the public, and promoting responsible pet ownership. I am privileged to be among the volunteers who support this organization.

Talk about dedication!!!   The turnout on a 40 degree rainy day was absolutely amazing.  It was quite cold for Georgia this time of year.  For Northeasterners and Midwesterners, this is equivalent to 20 degrees and freezing rain.

  

Photos of the walk and race are featured in a short slide show available by the following link:

Run For The Rescues 2013

Enjoy the day,
George