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D ear Mom... Remember when you made me write that report? The one where I got to choose any country in the world I wanted to study and you'd create an entire semester's work of curriculum on it? And I chose Australia? Remember? Of course you do. You always remember. In fact, I'm pretty sure you you saved it, complete in its 1989 glory. Being the typical hippie homeschooler you were, you made me stand in front of the family after dinner one night and I presented AUSTRALIA : WHY I LOVE IT. By Jasmine.
I'll never forget the look on dad's face--sweaty, proud, content--as I showed my hand-colored maps of the Great Barrier Reef and pages of koalas and kangaroos. You can also call them Roos, Dad. The furniture was mismatched and worn, the broken antennae lay on its side for better reception on channel 4, and mom's wallpaper covered just two walls. But, Mom, weren't we so happy?
I told you and Dad that one day I'd make it to Australia. I'm not quite sure my heart I fully believed it. I was a skeptical kid, wasn't I? Well, I'm proud to say I've made it. From our small house to the grandeur of The Sydney Opera House. I've finally made it. And I just wanted to write an open letter to thank you. For the sacrifices. The tears. The unknown. Thank you for pushing me to think big, dream bigger, and color within the lines.
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| Oh, and yes, we used a self-timer like the true tourists we were...ahem, are. Don't hate. |
    
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FAQ : Reader Questions XII
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O ne of the greatest benefits of hosting workshops is the unique ability to connect with other photographers. To talk, to share, to look in their eyes and know we're marching to the same tune. I always walk away inspired from my peers and they continue to push the industry forward...I love it!
Today and tomorrow I'm in Sydney teaching two workshops and I'm looking forward to learning and sharing with such awesome groups of photographers...and overall amazing human beings. In light of sharing, here's another installment of FAQs and I hope it helps at least one person.
And because posts are always better with a picture, here's on JD captured from the New Zealand workshop... |
Jodi asked:
You said you "find the right iso" --I'm curious about this process. How do you know it's the right iso?
I'll admit that learning iso came easily to me. Not because I'm a genius, but because I loooooved buying film as a kid. I'd sit at SavOn (my local drug store as a child), and I'd stare at all my film options. Each roll of film was identified but it's iso (ranging from 100-1600). The roll of film labeled with 100 iso had an icon with a sun on it, to be used in bright sun. The roll of film with 1600 had an icon of a crescent moon, to be used in low-light situations. What ISO denotes is how sensitive the image sensor is to the amount of light present. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the image sensor and therefore the possibility to take pictures in low-light situations. That's pretty much your spectrum.
I usually use 200 iso in a shaded area with reflected light, 400 iso in a moderately illuminated room, and 800 in a poorly lit room with little available light.
This is a very loose explanation, but--trust me--the most you practice, the more you'll find the right iso for the right situation. And remember, the lower the iso, the less noise (grain) you'll see in photos so try to keep iso low when possible.
Aleks asked:
I was wondering if you shoot with two camera bodies when you are at a wedding? What about at an engagement session?
I shoot with one camera at all times. I started this way and I've just grown into this style of shooting. I'm not comfortable using two cameras and I swap out lenses rather quickly. I'm able to do this by keeping my lenses in my Shootsac without caps, so I simply pull from the bag and swap in a matter of seconds. This also helps with my workflow as it's easier to work with one camera from me, and one from JD, as I'm reviewing my images after a wedding.
Nikki asked:
I love in your pictures when you have a close up of someone looking nice and crisp and then the other person is blurry behind them. I can kind of do it when I am really close up to something but then there is not much in the background and everything is so close&& you are able to do it and get a full person or 5 in the shot. How do you get your camera focus like that?
This depends on a few things, but I'd suggest starting with two things: 1. Shooting manually and; 2. Using lenses with wide apertures (anything wider than a f/2.8 would be a great place to start).
1. When you shoot manually, you can control your f-stop, also known as aperture. If you're shooting in Auto or P mode, the camera has a tendency to favor mid-range apertures, like f/4 or greater. In order to really push your lenses, you have to be in total control. At least I think so! ;)
2. The wider your aperture (the smaller the number, the wider the aperture) the more bokeh (the blurry effect) you can produce in the background. I use lenses that have very wide apertures (as wide as a f/1.2) and this makes it easier to achieve crisp images with a distinctly blurry background. To break this down a little more, if I shot a photo at 1.2, a person would be very sharp and the background would be blurry. If I shot the same photo at f/22, a person would still be in focus, but plenty of things in the background would be in focus and the depth of field is not as distinct. Most kit lenses (lenses that automatically come with digital cameras) only get as wide as f/4.0. This is a fine aperture, but it makes it harder to achieve drastic depth of field.
Danielle asked:
What is your advice for shooting in full sun, besides looking for shade? Do you use reflectors? I know practice is the key here, but I hate feeling like if it's not an overcast day that my shoot doesn't have the possibility of being as good.
To be honest, if I can get away from shooting in full sun, I will definitely try. If a photographer looks hard enough, there's always a spot tucked away that can act as an alternative to shooting in full sun. If I have to shoot during full sun, I first look for open shade. This is always the best option in a pinch. Secondly, I'll look for natural reflectors to help off-set the strength of the sunlight. Shooting in the sun can be beautiful and radiant if a photographer can find a brightly illuminated wall to equalize the lighting in the situation. I wrote more about using natural reflectors in this post.
Happy Monday and don't forget about the upcoming SmugMug meeting to be on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at Mesa Verde Country Club at 7pm. I won't be able to make this month's meeting, but I hear great things are in store! :) |
I like being boring. In fact, I'm TOTALLY okay with it. I prefer slow nights, long dinners, lazy afternoons on the beach, and time alone with people I love the most. Being in Australia with JD has been just that. We're doing everything slowly and being intentionally boring. Don't hate. This is an ideal situation for me.
A couple days ago, we spent the entire afternoon lounging on the beach. Having never surfed before, JD gazed about the thousands of boards in the water and was all, I think I'm gonna do THAT today! And just like that, he did. It's the thing I adore the most about him: His ability to merely look at something and decide he'll be good at it. Okay, so maybe 'good' is a stretch, but he did stand up more than a few times. And I cheered from the sand like a lunatic.
Crazy, Americans.
I finished an entire book on Manly Beach, nectarines and water tucked safely in my purse for all the literary craziness I was doing, which sometimes caused hunger. I flipped from front to back, letting the Australian sun grill me like a shrimp on the barbie. Yes, I just went THERE. Oh, com'on, you would too! When JD ascended from the turquoise ocean, he shook his wet hair over my browning body, baptizing me with the Aussie coast. I shriek with delight.
Crazy, Americans.
As he lays next to me, JD tells me I got dark. I ask him what I look like. After a few seconds of quiet thinking, he responds, Like a falafel. Okay, really? A falafel?! Not like a cute grape or coconut? A falafel?! You really need to work on female descriptions I tell him jokingly.
We later find ourselves at Mortar and Pestle, eating what could possibly be the best Thai we've ever eaten. Ever. The restaurant is loud, but we're louder. Talking and reviewing the day. We laugh. Too loudly.
Crazy, Americans. |
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Fiona Andersen : New Zealand Photographer
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A few months ago, I was contacted by a complete stranger. Getting such emails is a normal occurrence, but when she proposed organizing a workshop in her home country of New Zealand, I paused. I have no idea what made me respond...what piqued my interest...what made me so interested in this particular proposal. Perhaps it was merely her humor, her self-deprecating wit, or her unwillingness to take no for an answer, but we set up a time to chat. As most blog readers know, I just completed the New Zealand workshop and Fiona Andersen did more than I could have ever imagined.
I blog more about the event later, but the day before The Workshop we walked around Christchurch scoping locations to shoot, so we also decided to have a quick Anytime session for Fiona. We had a blast getting to know each other better and photographing her beauty, both inward and out. |
| I saw this random alley and could've shot here all day long the light was so pretty... |
| Fiona, you're gorgeous. Really, you are. |
| I'll end on this note since it's a little fierce, and I think she looks fab! :) |
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Published in Bride's Magazine
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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I t's the biggest honor photographing a wedding. Each and every wedding I photograph makes me cherish what I do a little more and I walk away feeling blessed to have documented love on the first day of forever. However, when a wedding industry peer asks me to shoot her wedding, I'm floored. There's no greater honor than shooting a colleague's special day, and it's something that totally blows me away.
When Carissa of JL Designs and Events asked me to photograph her wedding in Malibu, I was over-the-moon thrilled. We connected early on in my career and she had a heart of gold...so it was easy for me to love everything about her. Carissa supported my growth and when her wedding planning started, I was honored to be a part of her team. Carissa is a florist and event designer, so she had a fabulous affair...and with the help of her publicist--Be Inspired PR--the wedding was published in Brides Magazine! What an honor!
Since the wedding, Carissa and I have collaborated on many projects together and I'm incredibly honored to call her a peer...and friend. |
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