St. Petersburg Florida panorama photograph featured in USFSP Conference banner

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My panorama image was used in the banner above. Thank you to attendee Tom Edmonds for the photo of it.Thank you to Tom Edmonds and St. Petersburg in The World for licensing one of my panorama images of downtown St. Petersburg Florida to feature in a banner a tthe Conference on International Affairs in March 2013.  As a photographer selling prints is still one of the most satisfying things, even in this digitla age.  

I have a large catalogue of unique images of St. Petersburg, Florida and the surrounding area available for commercial license and fine art print that when used show local support for area far beyond what a stock image can represent.  

White Background headshot with Casey in St. Petersburg Florida home studio

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This business headshot for Casey was made right in my St. Petersburg home studio - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/160th - Strobist: SB-800 in brolly to frame right & SB-600 in shoot through umbrella to frame leftThis afternoon Casey visited my home photography studio in St. Petersburg for a headshot.  Her mom came along and was very helpful petting Kiki while the photography was going on.  It was easy to photograph Casey as she was a natural in front of the camera.  After making lighting and posing adjustments as per her request it was just a matter of pushing the shutter, cropping the image, doing a little editing, then adding a digital white background and finished.  Well, I guess it does not sound so simple after all, but anytime I do not have to worry about the client's smile, it seems easier to me!

1-on-1 Canon XSi DSLR Photography Lesson in St. Petersburg Florida with Meredith

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Meredith and her Canon XSi learning how to use DoF during our 1-on-1 photography lessonOn a spring Saturday morning I met Meredith with her Canon XSi for a 1-on-1 DSLR Photgraphy Lesson in the downtown St. Petersburg area.  Like many of the people that take my lessons, she had had her DSLR for quite some time, but only had been using it on various auto-modes.  I taught her my 5-step method for making the transition to shooting in manual mode and that there is a definite methodology one can follow to get a well exposed and sharp shot in any given shooting situation.  

Besides how to use the 5-settings necessary for manual shooting, I offer advice and tips on how to manage one's photography gear starting with how to safely change lenses, how to hold a DSLR properly, how many memory cards & batteries to have, etc.  I firmly believe many practices of the professional photography must be adopted even if just going out shooting casually for fun on weekends.  

The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel Wedding with Mattie & Kenny

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Bride & Groom on the rooftop deck of The Westin Tampa Bay - wedding photography - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 400 1/60th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame rightIt had been over a year and a half since I last photographed a wedding, but since I did so many in the past it was as they say, like riding a bike getting back into the flow of shooting a four hour event.  Mattie & Kenny's wedding was at The Westin Tampa Bay on a narrow piece of land between Tampa and Clearwater floating in the middle of Tampa Bay.  From the rooftop deck with its clear glass walls, the feeling you are floating on water, as seen in the above photograph, was pretty cool even with overcast skies.

Bride getting ready at The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel - wedding photography - Nikon D300 Nikkor 105mm VR micro @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/100th - Strobist: SB-800 in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame leftIt turned out that Mattie and I had a few mutual friends, including my eldest friend Terry and his wife Beth, both of whom attended the wedding giving it a rather familiar feeling.  The atmosphere in her room as she was getting ready was very loose and full of laughing.  I began my shooting for the day by making a photo of Mattie putting on the finishing touches.

Bride & bridemaids at The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel - wedding photography - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/60th - Strobist: SB-800 to frame left & SB-600 to frame right both in shoot through umbrellasMattie had seen images from another wedding I photographed in the Westin a few years back and also wanted some photos featuring the lobby's unique waterfall.  I used two shoot through umbrellas to provide enough light on the bride and bridesmaids for the portrait above.

Bride & Groom dancing at The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel - wedding photography - Nikon D80 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 800 1/100th with SB-600 hotshoe mountedThe reception was in a room with floor to ceiling windows facing southwest which flooded it with light during the late afternoon allowing me to use that light as a hyper backlight in the above portrait of the bride & groom having their traditional first dance.  

Groom & Bride listening at The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel - wedding photography - Nikon D80 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 400 1/100th with SB-600 hotshoe mountedCupcakes continue to be popular at weddings, with dozens under the wedding cake itself.  I got to have one of the cupcakes as a closing treat when I was finished shooting.  I often say I shoot weddings just for the cake!

Bride & Groom cake smash at The Westin Tampa Bay Hotel - wedding photography - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/8 ISO 640 1/60th with SB-800 hotshoe mountedFrom start to finish it was a joyful and surprisingly emotional wedding for Mattie & Kenny.  Not often have I seen the groom get so emotional during the vows and also during the speeches at the reception.  They also were not afraid to smash a little cake, which I also found refreshing since some newlyweds nowadays opt for a clean cake eating which is no fun at all!

Thank you Mattie & Kenny! 

Photography Tip - show your photos to people online

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Digital photography is no doubt a revolution in photography.  There are many reasons for this, but one very big one is that simply more photographs exist because of the ease of making a digital photograph.  Combine this with the existence of the Internet, and in 2013 there are infinitely more photos and more people to see them than there were just 15 years ago.  Any level of photographer benefits from showing her/his photographs online, from the full-time pro, to the budding amateur, to the serious enthusiast.  

 

REASONS TO SHOW YOUR PHOTOS ONLINE

  • GET FEEDBACK & CRITIQUES

There is nothing like honest feedback on your images to help you improve your photography.  It is easy to fall in love with your own photographs, so often it takes another pair of eyes to point out a few things that could have imporoved the photograph.  Showing your photos online allows a photographer to get the constructive criticism needed to make it to the next photography level.

  • LEARN WHICH OF YOUR PHOTOS OTHERS LIKE

Sometimes I have a pretty good idea how popular a photo will be, however, many times I am surprised by which photo people like the most.  Showing my photos online has caused me to like or "discover" my own photos due to them being popular or liked for other reasons I did not see at first.  If not for showing these photos online and seeing what other people liked, they may have just lied in waste on my hard drive.  Also, you can ask people why they liked a particular photo more than another one and get useful feedback.

  • GET PAID!!

Just from having my photos online and discoverable by Google search, I have made money from selling prints and website usage licenses.  This is like found money to me.  The work has already been done making the photograph, and then by making just a little more effort to show that photo online, each time that is done the potential is created for selling and making money from a photograph.

 

Why I show my photographs on flickr -- my flickr page

~flickr was one of the original photo sharing websites.  There are tons of users on it and you can search for photos made by a specific camera and lens.  This helped me learn how to use my own gear.  I have sold several photos because people found them on my flickr page.  flickr is also very good for judging how popular a photograph is with a large audience.  There are also flickr groups you can submit your photos to for critique.  I have a pro account and recommend spending that small yearly fee as I usually sell a photo or two that covers that cost anyway.

Why I show my photographs on Google+ -- my Google+ page

~I started using Google+ because a lot of pro photographers were and when it first debuted it quickly became the hot site to show your photos.  Supposedly no one uses Google+ now, but I just heard this past week that it is still very good to post your photos to Google+ because Google gives search result preference to Google+ content.  For that reason alone I will keep using it.  Also, since it is not so populated, it makes it easy to follow the select few pro photographers I like to.

Why I show my photographs on facebook -- my facebook page

~Because everybody is on facebook!  Besides my own website, it is the most powerful online marketing tool for a photographer.  I friend my clients, put the photos from our shoots on my business facebook page and tag the clients in the photos.  This starts a network of their friends being exposed to my work, and their friends, etc, etc.  I also receive a lot of feedback on what is popular and can stay in touch with past clients.  I encourage clients to "like" my business page so they can follow my current work as well.  There is no other indirect way better for keeping in clients' mindview than the facebook timeline feed.

1-on-1 Nikon SB-700 Speedlight DSLR Photography Lesson with Lourdes in St. Petersburg Florida

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Up on a parking garage in downtown St. Petersburg for our second photography lesson.For our second of four 1-on-1 DSLR Photography Lessons Lourdes had some new photography gear to debut.  To pair with her Nikon D5100 this time she had a new Nikon SB-700 Speedlight.  So to practice low light photography during the day, I took us to a parking garage in downtown St. Petersburg that offered wide open and close quarter areas.  Building on what we learned in our first lesson, this time I instructed her on how aperture and flash power mostly control the exposure on the subject, while the shutter speed controls the ambient/background light in a portrait using flash.  

This model is all about glamour!As seen in the photo above, I was standing in very low light in the parking garage in front of an open window with a very bright background.  Without using a speedlight, either I would have been a silhouette, or the outside would have had to of been pure white.  Using a speedlight essentially allows for two exposures to be made in one photograph.  This is a powerful tool and skill to have for photography.

St. Petersburg Grand Prix 2013 Classic Racers

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Porsche 911 Series 993 racing on the track at the St. Petersburg Grand Prix 2013 - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/1250thI entered the 2013 St. Petersburg Grand Prix raceway area around noon not know what type of cars I may see on the track at that time.  To my delight the classic racers were out and I got to see my favorite car, the Porsche 911 in several forms roaring around the course.  It took me awhile to find a suitable spot to photograph the cars because the double fence around most of the course just could not be shot through with any success.  

A Mustang takes the corner ahead of a Jaguar at the St. Petersburg Grand Prix 2013 - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/1250th

I ended up using a spot where a TV camera guy was.  There was a hole cut out of the fence that his huge camera was pointing through so I then only had one fence to shoot through and I could put my lens right up against essentially making it invisible to my camera's sensor.  This spot is where most of these shots are from.

Another classic Porsche 911 with huge rear wing taking a turn at the 2013 St. Petersburg Grand Prix - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/1000thI had some idea it would be very loud because as I sit here at home now with the windows open some 4 miles away I can hear the faint sound of engines even.  I actually liked the intense sound and did not use the promotional air plugs handed to me by some social media guy.  I was there less than an hour, so perhaps longer exposure to the engine sounds would have been headache inducing, but for me it was a rush to shoot and feel the subject so viscerally.  

Going down a long straightaway at the St. Petersburg Grand Prix 2013 - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/4 ISO 200 1/1000thI always wonder what the people do who live in the condos right on the race course.  Do they eventually block it out, love it, or just spend the weekend out of town?