Entries in Nikkor AF ED 80-200mm F2.8D (26)
Model Portfolio Shoot at the new Dali Museum St. Petersburg Florida with Abby
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 2:16PM Jason Collin 
Model Portfolio Shoot - Abby with New Dali Museum background - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/4 ISO 640 1/60th Strobist: SB-800 Speedlight to frame left & SB-600 Speedlight behind model
I was first in contact with model Abby back in October when she was in the process of moving to and getting settled in St. Petersburg. We were able to schedule a model portfolio shoot this week on a beautiful Florida winter evening using the new Dali Museum as a backdrop, a location I had been wanting to use for awhile.
Abby surrounded by bokeh using "sandwich lighting" - Nikon D300 Nikkor 105mm VR Micro @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame right both @ 1/4 powerNot only did I get to try out a new location for this shoot, but also some new strobist techniques, like what I am calling the "sandwich lighting" technique seen in the photograph above. I placed one speedlight on each side of Abby with no front or backlight intending to create dramatic and defining shadows. The bokeh is a result of lights strung on trees.
Abby was a tireless jumper! - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5 ISO 200 1/200th Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame right about 45 degrees eachWhen I first mentioned my thoughts for this shoot with Abby, I said I wanted to make some of the images dynamic, involving motion in some way. She was all for a jumping shot and I did not realize while shooting just how many times she jumped until I started the editing process at home and saw over 20 shots to choose from! Abby's vertical leap is very impressive. This was a fun shot to make.
Abby among the ribbons of the wishing tree at the Dali Museum - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/200th natural lightWe started out the shoot with some natural light shots around what I call the "wishing tree" behind the Dali Museum where visitors tie their entrance bracelts to long green ribbons, often with wishes or messages written on them.
A famous Dali melting clock on a bench with model Abby - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/200th natural lightAnyone familiar with Dali's work will recognize the melting clock image. This is part of a bench in the very nice grounds surrounding the museum. I had Abby start by lying down on the bench, but I found myself liking this pose much more as overall I was looking to make less traditional model looking images.
A view of downtown St. Petersburg behind model Abby - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/200th Strobist: SB-800 just to camera left & SB-600 to model's rightOver the course of the shoot Abby and I found out that we have some very rare things in common, including our college majors, having visited Thailand and that our parents currently live in the same small area of Florida. Along with Abby's ability to come up with numerous, great poses, this made the shoot one of my most enjoyable ever.
Dali lights up at night in this model portfolio shot - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/4 ISO 400 1/20th Strobist: SB-800 to left of camera & SB-600 behind modelWe started the shoot at the ideal time allowing us to begin with natural light shots, moving toward twilight shots before ending with some night shots making use of the lights of the Dali Museum for the background.
Lens flare on purpose modeling portfolio image - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/11 ISO 200 1/200th Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame rightIt was very nice to meet and work with Abby and I would recommend her for anyone who needs a model for a project as she is professional, very easy to work with and of course beautiful. You can see more of her work on Model Mahem.
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Brown Pelican Bird in Flight St. Petersburg Florida Fine Art Nature Photography
Monday, January 23, 2012 at 4:08PM Jason Collin 
Brown Pelican preparing to dive St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/1250th
Regular followers of my nature posts will know that I am very fond of photographing the many local brown pelicans in my St. Petersburg, Florida neighborhood. I have not yet achieved my long-term goal of photographing a pelican skimming just over the water, but I was glad to be able to add these images to my pelican portfolio. On Saturday pelicans were regularly diving out of the sky into the water for fish around The Pier. Once getting the settings dialed in using shutter priority mode and multi-point focus, it was just a matter of tracking the birds fast enough as they made their dives.
Brown Pelican on an aerial fish survey - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/1250thThis collection of pelican images focuses on the birds as they are about to make a plunge into Tampa Bay hoping to come up with a beak-full of small silvery fish. Observing a bird's behavior is key to being able to capture the photographs one wants. I watched where and how they circled and what they did with their wings right before their split second descents.
Brown Pelican wings arced for diving in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/1000thDuring this shoot I also became, at long last, a believer in shutter priority mode. With the pelicans diving from a bright blue sky background down to the dark waters of Tampa Bay, I knew what shutter speed I needed to freeze their flight, but adjusting the aperture constantly to maintain the correct exposure would have been nearly impossible. Thus, shutter priority was the best exposure mode to use for these bird-in-flight images.
Brown Pelican hovering before diving in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4.5 ISO 200 1/1250thI also used multi-point focus because I was able for the most part to fill the frame with the pelicans, allowing the 21-focus points to act as a net. If I could not fill the frame with the pelicans, well, I probably would not even push the shutter, but in that case I would use a single focus point to place right on the bird to distinguish it from any other possible background elements. In relative close-up shots like these, the multi-focus point setting gave me the best chance of landing a focus point on the subject (pelican) where a single focus point might get lost under a single wing flap.
Visit The Pier for great pelican and bird-in-flight photography opportunities:
Tampa Model Urban Portfolio Shoot with Stephanie
Thursday, December 15, 2011 at 11:36PM Jason Collin 
Pay phones may not be around much longer, I will be sad to see them go -- Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th Strobist: SB-600 to frame left
During this portfolio shoot with model Stephanie in and around downtown Tampa a telephone theme began to just naturally get created. I did not think about it at the time, but upon editing the above photo I realized that pay phones will not be around much longer. Probably anyone under age twenty today has never nor will ever use one. I find it very interesting the things that become obsolete in a society.
Similarly, phonebooks will become relics -- Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/80th Strobist: SB-600 to frame leftIt seems only natural that if pay phones disappear, so too will phonebooks. I cannot say that the last few phonebooks did anything but immediately go into the hallway closet and then eventually the recycling bin. We found this old, decaying phonebook near an equally old and decaying house. It was my idea to add the cellphone to the shot to contrast with the phonebook.
Analog technology in ruin -- Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/2.8 ISO 400 1/400th Strobist: SB-600 to frame rightI really enjoyed making these nontraditional modeling shots with Stephanie and I appreciate her being open to so many unusual ideas. She interacted with all the urban props we found in juxtaposition to how she was dressed, in flowing summer dress.
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Florida beach bikini model commercial photography
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:22PM Jason Collin 
Model: Monica Location: Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/2.8 ISO 200 1/3200th
If you are looking for a place to warm up this winter, Sunset Beach on Treasure Island, St. Petersburg, Florida is a great choice. In this collection of natural light photographs bikini model Monica makes a strong case for Florida tourism if not out right relocation!
Model: Monica Location: Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/2.8 ISO 200 1/2000thOne does not swim in the ocean on the west coast of Florida, but rather the Gulf of Mexico. This means much warmer water year round as well as calm conditions out on the water. Dolphins are a common sight. In the above photograph Monica emerges from the Gulf in dramatic fashion.
Model: Monica Location: Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/2.8 ISO 200 1/2000thThose warm and calm conditions also make Florida's gulfcoast beaches ideal places to put your beach towel down on the white sand and just enjoy the tranquility. The end to most days on the gulfcoast is punctuated with a fantastic sunset like the one Monica is watching above.
Model: Monica Location: Sunset Beach Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/2.8 ISO 200 1/1250thIf you live in a cold place and have to suffer through a harsh winter, well then I hope these images have helped to warm you up a little and that you visit Florida to thaw out on your winter vacation. Be sure and contact me for great Florida beach portraits while you are here.
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Vivid Florida Waterfront Neighborhood Twilight Palm Trees
Thursday, November 10, 2011 at 3:51PM Jason Collin 
The best part of living in Florida, its sunset & twilight views - Nikon D300 with Nikkor AF ED 80-200mm f/2.8D @ f/8 ISO 200 10 sec on Induro CT214 tripod with Nikon MC-30 cable releaseIf you are a photographer living in Florida, very likely you will, at least at first, be most drawn to photographing the magnificent twilight and sunset skies Nature provides on a daily basis. The time of the transition from day to night is my favorite part of the 24-hour day cycle. I have a fantastic view of this from my back patio, but to be honest, I do not take advantage of it enough. In summer with the later sunset time, it is easier as I often take Kiki for our evening walk between 8pm and 8:30pm. Now back in regular time, with sunsets coming before 6pm, our walks are in all darkness, but those provide stargazing opportunities.
Vivid twilight photographs are not difficult to make. All you need are:
- a western view (or eastern if clouds available to reflect twilight)
- a sturdy tripod
- the correct shutter speed to pull the most color from the sky
The DSLR and the lens used do not matter that much. The sturdy tripod eliminates problems of camera shake resulting in blur. The correct shutter speed eliminates exposure problems, but since you are using a very long exposure, there is a wide range of choices depending on one's desired results of a brighter or darker twilight image. So unlike many other types of photography, the margin for error in twilight shooting is far greater than say a sunset portrait.