072509 Misc Cool Stuff

Here's a nice photo from the Kelby Photowalk from last week. It's in the slideshow HERE, but I really thought it worked well. It too is a fake tilt-shift.

These shrimp were at Jungle Jim's in Fairfield Ohio. The place is crazy and awesome. These shrimp were as big as Terri's hand. HERE's a picture with Terri's finger in it for size.

071409 Sunflower Field 2! Class! (B is B)

Photography lessons with Nicholas Viltrakis are custom tailored and FUN call or email for availability 513.227.3819 Nicholas.Viltrakis@gmail.com!

I was lucky enough to have three beautiful photo scholars and models.

Terri (my beautiful wife),

Lauren,

All of these images have been taken using the frugal man's technique detailed here...

and Brit.

...though Lauren was our model of the day everyone learned a lot and had a good time.

That's right just one 580 EXII!!

the amazing Brit!


Lauren's hair.



At the end of the class we even played with colored gels.

Classes are a bargain at $50 per session. More classes are a available call or email now to learn how to take amazing photographs like these for your clients for just pennies!


071809 Kelby Photo Walk 2009



This year I got the privilege of accompanying David Ziser on the Scott Kelby (who accompanied us on a wedding) photowalk 2009.

I was a late registrar and I wasn't qualified to win the fabulous prizes, but that didn't stop my beautiful wife and I from participating! It was amazing!!!!

We walked from Mount Adams to eden park and back.
This HDR Panorama is AMAZING!!!




Check out this fake tilt-shift of Dayton Ky!

071709 The Solution to your Problems!


I normally don’t write much on here, but I think this post warrants special exception.

I post to you today not as a professional photographer, but as a salesman, as a mentor, and as a visionary… follow my tale below for a special insight into the fantastic world of professional wedding photography and the potential for both you and it therein.

#1. Are you tired of boring stuffy wedding ceremonies where everyone is silent as the efficient or religious official is delivering the solemn edict uniting two separate people into the united sanction of holy matrimony? Nary a cough escapes the silent congregation witnessing the blessed event as the vows are exchanged and the oath spoken that no man may put asunder. How boring, right? Why doesn’t someone liven it up, you say? Where is the merriment, the levity, the mirth? Find out below…

#2. How many times have you been in the following predicament? Your boss is praising you for all of your accomplishments that allow both he and you to deliver the most top-notch service in your industry. In fact every customer expresses the same exuberant sentiment… Folks, my service is photography, but this sentiment applies to all vocations! You know the feeling… everything is going magnificently and both you and your employer are on top of your game. Your coverage is complete, stunning, and impressive enough for the wedding party to lose their balance in fainting spells as they view the unparalleled astounding imagery from your trusty Canon… but something isn’t right! Secretly you feel like perhaps this is too much positive feedback! Perhaps the compliments and congratulations aren’t deserved. Within you lies an uncomfortable feeling of unjust arrogance at the praise and congratulations that you receive by delivering award winning imagery and wedding portraiture so consistently while still surpassing the expectations of the bride, groom, family, and guests day-in and day-out week after week. It just isn’t right, you say! How can I repay both my boss and the people of this blessed event and show them just how special and unique their event is?!?!?! Find out below…

Friends, I cannot give you a single magic bullet that will allow you to do all of these things. But I can relay a tale for you of how I overcame these problems in my recent wedding this past Friday. If you think about it, both the stuffy old ceremony and the accolades in the area of wedding photography have quite a bit in common for the wedding photographer!

This past Friday night I was, once again, graced by the opportunity to assist the one and only David Ziser on his most recent wedding. As was customary, I showed up impeccably dressed and exuded that certain “je ne se qua” that sets David Ziser Photography apart from every other photography studio under the sun. The uncompromising Marc, also DAZsisting tm, was in rare form as he held the Zumbrella tm, the Zray tm, extra lenZ’s tm and the wedding schedulZ tm.

From every angle and every fleeting Zexpression tm David, Marc, and I masterfully delivered unparalleled wedding coverage for our bride, Grace, and everyone lucky enough to be invited to this prestigious event at the fabulous Phoenix hotel in downtown Cincinnati Ohio. Overjoyed, the entire wedding party gleefully followed David, Marc, and I from the sun-dappled archways of Garfield Park to the elegant marble staircases of the Phoenix as portrait after portrait beamed off the camera boasting exemplary lighting, composure, and composition. In fact, by the time we got to the processional, I must admit that I was starting to feel the pangs of guilt I have mentioned earlier in this post. That’s right, to provide only such amazing photography seemed almost insulting to this fine family. They deserved more! They deserved a truly memorable ceremony! And the stage was set…

As we began the processional I recorded video of the event on the Canon 5D Mark II as David had the honor of photographing the Bride’s maids and the bride as she entered. She was more beautiful than any before her! David, Marc, and I retreated to the back of the ballroom as to be as unobtrusive as possible for the solemn event when a magical thing happened.

Just as the bride and groom were exchanging the rings I did it. I, in one singular action, both created the most memorable ceremony for everyone in attendance and humbled myself like no other wedding photographer before me… I backed into a fire door and set off the fire alarm. Yes… I know what you are thinking. How could this modest man of average background single-handedly forge such a comprehensive solution to the two main problems facing wedding photographers today!?!?! It was easy. Just like divine intervention, it was as though my bum had a mind of it’s own. I simply thought, “I’ll back out of this Panorama David is taking.” And there it was… the solution… divinity… suddenly this was the most memorable moment of the most memorable day of hundreds of people’s lives; a singular perfection in uniqueness. Suddenly there was nothing that any of the nine infants and toddlers in attendance could do that could create a worse consequence than I had already created. None. I single handedly #1. gave Chris, the groom, the opportunity to escape. #2. prevented anyone from giving a reason the beautiful couple shouldn't be married, #3. absolved any parents from the fate of saying “I’m sorry my child ruined your wedding!” and #4. set a precedent becoming the “You’re that guy!?!/You’re the guy who…/Watch out for fire alarms!” guy that livened up the stuffy old wedding Jerry Lewis style.

In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that I AM a genius, a selfless proponent of the individuality of weddings, and a meager proponent for tighter screws on fire door push bars. I want to express my gratitude for Chris and Grace who’s wedding was so notably “enhanced” Friday and Marc as well as David Ziser who notably didn’t punch me in the throat during the remainder of the “relatively” uneventful spectacular gala that transpired as I relegated myself to the banal job of providing beautiful, perfectly executed wedding photography for the remainder of the event. I love you all.

Despite my offer no one wanted me to perform my encore, which was a dazzling three flight pratfall down a marble staircase.


This is the actual scene of the crime. The family had this image taken to put in the album.

070909 Katie's Vintage Voyage (B is B)

This Thursday I got to Photograph Katie, who had been waiting 3 years to get her portraits taken by my wife and I.


Katie is just AWESOME!


Her sense of style and personality are amazing!



She's just AWESOME!








Thank you Katie! You're the best!

070409 Dear Rain, Does it have to be EVERY 4th?

Every year I have been in Cincinnati since 2006 it has rained on the 4th of July. The only year it wasn't raining DURING the fireworks was last year. This year was no exception. :( This is the only photo I made on July 4th 2009. It was not raining at 11:30pm.

070309 Face Off

I decided to give something new a try this week and erase people's faces.



As freakish as this may seem it does have a practical application. The photo editing software out there now and now has some amazing capabilities. Although erasing the majority of the features on a person's face may not be the intended use, you still have to admit that the ability to remove that large of an object or area is pretty beneficial.

Think about it this way. If I can take a person's face off, I can surely correct any minor and even some major flaws for my clients. Post Production is truly 50% of photography these days. It allows great photographers to offer even more to our clients than any time in the past.

070209 INCREDI-Ball!

Anyone who talks to me on a regular basis knows that the little boys next door like to play sports in their back yard. I've found all sorts of things in my yard over the past two years. Balls, toys, hair gel, Frisbees, underpants, a tricycle... the list goes on and on... Thursday when I came home i found not one, but this many balls in my back yard...

Hailea, the dog, is perfectly fine with this.

070309 Birds

This is a Mockingbird that actually screams at all the smokers that stand outside the office. You can see it screaming here. Go bird, Go!

Just some birds that have nested near my office, but a photographer is a photographer and... here we are.

070309 Jaylee and the Aperture Trick

This photo was taken at Christmas 2007 with the ol' David Ziser Aperture trick. I took his method a bit farther by actually taping the heart shaped hole to a UV filter that screwed onto my 50mm lens. Here's a link to the how to of the trick.

It's a pretty easy to pull off and it has a fantastic effect for your clients.