Featuring The Pier in the background of this model portfolio shot - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th Strobist: SB-800 @1/2 power with diffuser cap to frame left & SB-600 @ 1/4 power with diffuser cap to frame rightI met Shane through Model Mahem and we soon setup a model portfolio shoot deciding on Vinoy Park in downtown St. Petersburg as the location and I suggested having the main shot idea to feature The Pier in the background, since in its current form it will only be around another two years or so.  That is the photograph featured above with me shooting from flat on my stomach to get the composition I wanted.  In the fading dusk light I thought that black & white suited the image better than the minimal color left in the original.

The setting sun blazes the sky yellow in this model portfolio shot - - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/8 ISO 200 1/250th Strobist: SB-600 @1/4 power with diffuser cap to frame left & SB-800 @ 1/4 power with diffuser cap to frame rightScheduling our model portofolio shoot just in time to catch the last bit of the sunset, I was able to make the above shot featuring a vivid yellow sky as the background from our vantage point in Vinoy Park and still include some of the local features in the background to put the photograph in a specific setting context, instead of a generic sunset that could have been anywhere.  Once again I was lying flat on my stomach to make the above shot.

The lights of The Pier provide the bokeh in this night shot - - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th Strobist: SB-800 @1/2 power with diffuser cap to frame left & SB-600 @ 1/4 power with diffuser cap to frame rightThis was the final shot I took of the model portfolio session.  I always like to end on an image that I know I will actually use, whenever possible.  In my model portfolio shoots quantity is not the goal, but rather producing a select few images that neither I nor the model already have in their portfolios, unless a model approaches me to recreate one of my shots.  I knew even before scheduling the shoot I wanted to make a shot like this featuring the lights of The Pier as bokeh in the background.

Shane was a great model and expressed the exact right emotions I was looking for in order to make these photographs.  

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Sunset through the trees in Vinoy Park St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/8 ISO 200 9-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseVinoy Park is my favorite spot in all of downtown St. Petersburg.  It juts out offering panoramic views of the downtown skyline and also The Pier and Tampa Bay too.  It is the best public place to watch the sunset in the area also, well, maybe the top of The Pier is just as good.  I am always looking for different perspectives, trying not to just use my own eye level for composing shots.  For this one I closed the legs of my tripod so that I was shooting just from about a foot off the ground.  This also allowed me to get the sun right under the tree's lowest branch.

• Photography Tip:  Use your tripod at its lowest height, or lay on your stomach if no tripod required for a unique, low perspective.

Marina view from Vinoy Park St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/8 ISO 200 9-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseMoving in front of the tree in the lead photo reveals a marina, on the far right Vinoy Renaissance Hotel and in the center 400 Beach Drive tower.  There are benches to sit on to enjoy this view.  I cannot imagine there are many sunsets they go unused.

North Straub Park in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/8 ISO 200 9-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseAll along the downtown St. Petersburg area are parks like North Straub Park above that offer quiet places to sit and enjoy the green environment that city developers very wisely preserved.  It is these parks that in my opinioin make St. Petersburg the most beautiful area to live in all of Tampa Bay.  

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Heather with her new Pentax K-5 during our first 1-on-1 DSLR Photography Lesson in St. PetersburgHeather contacted me about my 1-on-1 DSLR Photography Lessons for help with her new Pentax K-5 DSLR.  Like many of my past students, she had upgraded from a point and shoot camera and tried studying using books and videos, but there is nothing like getting direct, real time feedback for learning DSLR photography.  We met in the usual downtown St. Petersburg spot and had all the sun we wanted from mother nature.  Soon, I will have to only have lessons from 9am as the midday sun will just be too strong.

Heather had done some research into photography terms and what not, which was helpful when I explained my 4-step process for setting up a well exposed and in focus shot.  Since she had just a 18-55mm variable aperture lens, I advised her that for now all she needs to worry about are apertures f/5.6 f/8 and f/11 and when shooting in broad daylight like we were mostly, for still subjects, stick to f/11.

Actually Heather is having doubts about whether to keep her Pentax K-5 or switch to a Nikon D7000.  I like some of the ergonomics of Pentax bodies, but after a few minutes of searching both for a button and in the menus I could not find a way to change the drive mode, which I had never failed to do before with any of the dozens of DSLRs I have hands on during hundreds of lessons.  

Today was just our first of four lessons, as Heather chose the discounted 4-pack of lessons so I will be seeing her again soon.  I look forward to seeing the photographs she takes of her young children between now and then.

Jon with his new Sony A55 during our 1-on-1 DSLR Photography Lesson in Vinoy Park at sunsetWith sunset coming well after 7:30pm nowadays the return of springtime weekday evening lessons starts with Jon and his new Sony A55.  It was my first time to get hands on with this particular DSLR.  It was smaller physically than I expected and has a useful flip down LCD viewfinder.  However, the motion sensor that turns off the back LCD as you put your eye into the optical viewfinder seems like a very useful feature at first, but I found that when reviewing a photo the screen it can too easily get motion detected off.  

Jon had been using point and shoot digital cameras for awhile, and long ago even took a criminology based photography class, so he had some familiarity with photography terms like aperture, ISO, etc.  We started out shooting in aperture priority mode, but thanks to the light transition during our golden hour lesson I was able to show Jon how switching to manual mode really allows the photography to take control over the final image by including as much or as little of the vividness of the sunset sky.  

For the first time in a long time during a lesson there was time to venture out to Vinoy Park for the final part of the 2-hours.  This allowed for a little sunset portrait practice.  

Beyond photography Jon has also traveled in Asia so it was nice to talk about our experiences traveling there in between shooting locations.  I look forward to seeing where Jon's photography goes from here.

Parag willing to get dirty to get the best angle for a photograph in Vinoy Park St. Petersburg FloridaI first met Parag and his wife, Supna, at a networking event a few months ago.  We talked about photography some then and he expressed interest in taking some of my 1-on-1 DSLR Photography Lessons.  Then around Christmas time Supna contacted me wanted to help kick start Parag's photography in 2012 so she bought him a 4-pack of lessons via a Jason Collin Photography gift certificate (available year round).  We had our first of four lessons on a beautiful St. Petersburg mid-morning.

Parag has a good amount of photography knowledge already, and even a hardcover photo book to prove it.  What he wanted to learn from the lessons was to better tie together how to get the best possible exposure in more challenging situations where manually setting aperture and shutter speed may be necessary.  The harsh sunlight of any Florida day provided all the challenge we needed.  

I had a very good time during the lesson with Parag and I was impressed with his willingness to do whatever it took to make a shot (see photo above).  I also got to meet his very energetic chocolate lab puppy when Supna came by to pick him up at the end of the lesson.

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