beach portrait

Maternity Portraits on Honeymoon Island State Park with former photo student Betty

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Relaxing on a swing at Honeymoon Island State Park Florida during a maternity photo shoot - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 1/200th ISO 200 - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 to frame left & rightA lot can happen in 4 years and so it has for a past DSLR photography student of mine.  I first met Betty in November of 2010 for a couple of 1-on-1 DSLR photography lessons with her Canon T1i.  She contacted me this fall inquiring about maternity portraits and after a bit of schedule gymnastics, we were able to find a date and location that worked out.  It seems that in those 4 years she was busy, not so much with her photography as she informed me sadly, but in her personal life getting married and now expecting a baby.

I added a digital white background to this maternity portrait actually made on a beach at Honeymoon Island State Park Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/9 1/250th ISO 200 - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame rightIt is always nice to see a past photography client again and especially so to photograph a new part of their life.  It was a bit breezy out on the beach at Honeymoon Island State Park, but otherwise the weather cooperated pretty well.  I had a number of different styles of shots I wanted to try, including the tightly composed profile photo above.  I cut out the existing background as it was not very vivid to begin with and replaced it with a pure white digital background.

Willing to get sandy for a maternity photo at Honeymoon Island State Park Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 1/250th ISO 200 - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 angled down

For the last shot of the afternoon I asked them how willing they were to get a bit sandy.  They were quite willing so I was able to try out an overhead shot I thought was a bit different than the usual maternity composition angle.  I look forward to photographing Betty and baby in 2015!

Bilmar Beach Resort Sunset Portraits Treasure Island Florida with couple from Utah

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Visiting all the way from Utah, Matt & Shanna have fun at Bilmar Beach Resort during our sunset portrait session - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/250th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame right front & SB-600 to frame right rearIt would seem the Bilmar Beach Resort is a popular hotel with out of state visitors as the last time I did a sunset beach portraits session there it was with someone visiting from Chicago.  This time, a couple all the way from Utah was staying on Treasure Island and met me for a candid couples beach sunset portait shoot.  There are few things I am lucky with in life, but having good weather at sunset time is one of them.  Just the night before it was raining all evening.  As you can see, no rain in sight thankfully!

Twilight beach portrait at Bilmar Beach Resort Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left front & SB-600 to frame right rearBeing a Tuesday evening in September as well, there were few people on the beach allowing for wide shots like the one above to not require any tricky people removing editing in the background.  The twilight sky was also very beautiful.  We stayed a little extra longer to get the above shot.

Leaning in for a kiss at Bilmar Beach Resort Treasure Island Florida during sunset portraits - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame right front & SB-600 to frame left rearIt was a fun session with Shanna and Matt and I am always glad to be able to help people remember their time in Florida through photographs.

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1-on-1 Canon 5D Mark III DSLR Photography Lesson in St. Petersburg Florida with Gail

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Yours truly as the model for this off camera flash strobist portrait lesson on Sunset Beach Treasure Island FloridaOn a beautiful evening in Treasure Island, Florida I met Gail for an off camera flash portrait lesson on Sunset Beach.  She had found out about my photography lessons doing some online searching and decided to come all the way over from Vero Beach on the other coast of Florida!  We had two lessons.  The first was on the beach at sunset time showing Gail my 2-strobe technique for making off camera flash portraits.  I helped Gail setup her radio triggers and showed her how I position two speedlights for a variety of shots, including the walking one above.  The second strobe is directly in front of me (not visible in photo).

A strobist portrait of my DSLR photography student Gail on Sunset Beach made during our evening lesson.Gail switched out and became the model as I showed her more shooting tips for using her Canon 5D Mark III.  The second part of the lesson was showing Gail my editing workflow and helping her use her MacBook Pro much more efficiently too!  It was very nice to meet Gail and I am flattered she came all the way from the other coast.  She did of course stay a few nights in the area and made a trip out of it as well.

Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida Winter Family Beach Portraits

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Watching the sunset on Treasure Island family beach portraits - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 left & rightVisiting Florida from South Dakota, Sarah and family had to brave an unusually chilly and windy evening on Sunset Beach Treasure Island for our candid family beach portrait session.  At least Mother Nature provided clear skies and a bright sunset for a background.  

Mother & daughter test the waters at Sunset Beach on Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/400th natural lightEveryone was pretty tough and still put on a smile, except for the youngest who was not impressed at all by the beauty of the beach!  She was crying the whole time, but in mom's arms tried out the water.  When she's older I wonder what she will think of these photos?

Bright sunset on Treasure Island family beach portraits in Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 left & rightThe family chose color over the usual white and blue jeans.  I think it was a great choice and I will suggest such attire to future clients.  I think colorful clothing pulls the color out of the sky even more.

Not a happy baby at Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida portraits - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/320th - natural lightOne smile out of two is not bad!  As you can see the wind was blowing pretty strong from the west.  

The kids out of the picture for a little romance time on Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida portraits - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/10 ISO 200 1/160th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 left & rightA little break for romance letting the kids play on the sand behind camera for Sarah and Matt to have the frame to themselves.  

Photography Tip - use the subject to block the sun in portraits

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Photography Tip - when the sun is still strong in the sky, block it with the subject to soften its effect.

Making sunset portraits is a photography skill unto itself.  When shooting on a beach at sunset the conditions are rarely the same.  Thus, not only do you have the usual variables to deal with when shooting on location, and not only is there a ticking clock with the sun getting closer and closer to the horizon, there is also the unknown of how the sun will effect your shot according to its strength.  

If you find the setting sun is overpowering your portrait, then a good photography tip to use is to block most or all of the brightest part of the sun with the subject.  This will reduce lens flare too.  

Of course unless you want the subjects to be silhouettes, you will need a speedlight or two off camera to light them up.  The sun is then used as a backlight source complementing your portrait instead of dominating it if the subjects were not blocking any of the strong light coming from the setting sun.

Bilmar Resort Hotel Treasure Island Beach Sunset Portraits with Lisa

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Lisa on the beach at sunset at Bilmar Hotel Resort on Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame rightVisiting from Chicago, Lisa wanted to have some professional portraits made of herself on vacation.  I met her at the Bilmar Hotel, a place I have shot at before.  The weather the three days prior to our shoot were nearly constant rain, and Lisa was concerned, but my lucky weather streak for beach portraits continued as you can see we had a near ideal sunset.

Twilight beach portrait at Bilmar Hotel on Treasure Island - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 behind subject & SB-600 in front rearLike many people, Lisa told me she was not that comfortable having her photograph taken, but as is often my experience, they turn out to be much better models than they ever thought they could.  I may see Lisa again for a photography lesson in the spring when she returns with a Nikon DSLR of her own.