Portrait

Madeira Beach Florida Sunset Beach Portraits with Paula & Family

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All smiles for this family on Madeira Beach during their sunset portrait session in Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/250th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 @ 1/2 powerIt had been awhile since I had a sunset family beach portrait session on Madeira Beach, so it was good to meet Paula and family there recently, although once facing the Gulf of Mexico, pretty much every beach on the Pinellas peninsula looks the same!  The family-in-a-row was a new style photograph for me.  I am always looking for new ways to photograph families on the beach and adding as much variety to a family's set of shots as possible.  I like this in-a-row composition and will definitely be adding it to my already existing set of shots.

Sisters all stacked up on Madeira Beach during a fun family beach portraits session - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/640th - natural lightAll three sisters stacked themselves up and were bookended by their parents.  I encourage families to physically interact as much as possible to add a natural and fun look to shots.  The more you come into physical contact, the better the results is typically how it goes.  Just standing stiffly side-by-side is something I try to avoid at all costs.

Family togetherness on Madeira Beach in Florida during a sunset portrait session - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/500th - natural lightI wonder if in 20 years these sisters will remember what they were laughing about in this moment.  I hope they can.  That is the potential power of a still photograph.

A beautiful sunset on Madeira Beach Florida for family portraits - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 @ 1/2 powerFor me personally (and as a photographer), I prefer there to be some clouds along the horizon and in the sky in general for sunset portraits.

Sisters jumping on Madeira Beach during a family beach sunset portrait session in Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 & SB-600 @ 1/2 powerI think these three sisters jumped the highest I have ever seen for a jumping photograph of this nature.  Madeira Beach and mother nature provided a very nice backdrop for this family beach sunset portrait session.

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.  

Tampa Portrait Photography Mother & Baby Son in black & white University of Tampa

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Mother holding her young son up in the air at University of Tampa - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 400 1/250thThese are a pair of black & white images from my first ever paid portrait session in Florida.  Somehow I had never written about them before.  These mother and baby son portraits were made on the University of Tampa campus.  I learned a lot from this portrait session, especially to not rely on the Nikon Creative Lighting System's commander mode for triggering speedlights!  I soon switched to using dedicated radio triggers.

Mother holding her baby son - Tampa Portrait Photographer - Nikon D300 Nikkor 105mm VR micro @ f/8 ISO 200 1/125thI chose the above photo out of several others of similar composition because in this one the baby boy is grabbing his mother's necklace producing a natural smile in mom and a natural act that I believe all babies do.  

Jason & Kiki Holiday Family Portrait 2013

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Me and Kiki Holiday Portrait November 2013 at photography student Stacy's house in Treasure Island, FloridaThere are not many chances to get a portrait made with me and Kiki.  When I try self-portraits, Kiki looks like she is being tortured.  Otherwise, I have to resort to composite photo gimmicks.  So I was glad that photo student Stacy was able to make one of Kiki and I using the same lighting setup I had just used to photograph her daughters in her house for their Christmas Card photo.  Kiki still looks a bit tortured, but at least she is looking at the camera this time!

Christmas Card Portraits Treasure Island Florida Three Sisters

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Holiday photo card portrait with three sisters wrapped in Christmas lights - Nikon D4 Nikkor 24-70mm @ f/5.6 ISO 100 2.5 sec tripod mounted - Strobist: SB-800 in 43" brolly frame rightLong time DSLR photography student Stacy invited me to her home to photograph her daughters for their family Christmas card.  She said I could bring Kiki along as well (more about this below).  This was an unusual shoot as Stacy worked with me to learn how to make portraits and I used much of her own photography gear (note the use of a Nikon D4 for all these shots!).  I had shown her my wedding couple wrapped in Christmas lights shot before, which we did with the three sisters for the above image.  

Christmas Photo Card portrait three sisters in front of their Christmas Tree - Nikon D4 Nikkor 24-70m @ f/4 ISO 100 1/200th - Strobist: SB-900 to frame right in 43" brollyWhen editing this black & white image I wanted mainly the lights of the tree to be visible in the background framing the girls.

Smiling in front of Christmas tree bokeh for holiday portrait in Treasure Island Florida - Nikon D4 Nikkor 70-200mm with 2x teleconverter @ f/5.6 ISO 6400 1/60th - natural lightUsing the new 2x teleconverter Stacy recently got, I took advantage of an effective 400mm focal length to create extreme bokeh in the background of the above shot of the same Christmas tree lights used in the B&W shot.  

Holiday Photo Card Portrait before the fireplace in Florida - Nikon D4 Nikkor 24-70mm @ f/6.3 ISO 100 1/4th tripod mounted - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-900 to frame rightA more formal shot before the lit fireplace, which made things pretty hot for the girls, but throughout our shoot they were great and knew how to get into proper positions unprompted!  It was like working with professional models!

In all the shots Kiki was lying near the girls! It was my first time to bring her on a portrait shoot. Now when I try to photograph Kiki she is never happy about it and ends up looking like a sad puppy (see here).  However, she was all too willing to get into every photo with the girls and smile!  For the piano shot we let a sleeping dog lie and framed the portrait around her.  She just wanted to participate and be involved!

It was a fun shoot and a chance for me to try a few new things shooting inside someone's home, as I most often shoot outside on location.  I look forward to seeing the photos in print on Stacy's family Christmas card!

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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.