Early this morning I drove to Temple Beth-El to photograph my first Bar Mitzvah. On a very rainy afternoon last month I went to the temple to check it out in preparation for this morning's shooting. I liked the dome design of the temple. I thought it was interesting architecture. I was also pleased to see that lighting would not be a problem, as even on that rainy day, with the lights turned up, my single strobe style of photography would work well.
I searched for Bar Mitzvah photographs for reference, but did not find that many actually. I was able to find enough to know which certain types of shots are "must gets" for a Bar Mitzvah. The two above photos of reading from the torah (wide shot and close up of the hand) are Bar Mitzvah standards.
Jake was a very good sport during the one hour+ of shooting. He always had his smile ready and had no problem with multiple takes as various family members entered and exited the frame with him.
Jake's Bar Mitzvah was both an interesting cultural and photography experience for me. Temple Beth-El was a great place to shoot in. In fact, I will profile the interior of the temple in an upcoming post. I look forward to photographing my next Bar Mitzvah.