Wedding: Graham and Lauren

Graham and Lauren are one of those couples that the second you meet them, you feel you’ve known them for ages. Wonderfully warm, genuine, and downright gorgeous to boot, they were a joy to work with. For them, it began with a crush on each other in High School, going to college, and eventually living together in France. The couple was wonderful enough to accept my offer to shoot an engagement video that you can see here. Through both the video and the wedding they were so accepting and trusting; it made my entire experience a wonderful, exciting shoot.

Lighting And Set:

As you would expect, most of the outdoor shots were shot in natural lighting; it was a beautiful day. Again, I feel that while strobes can be a great asset, they really detract from the environment and interrupt the ceremony for those attending. Therefore during ceremonies I rely quite a bit on natural light and my f/1.8 and f/1.4 lenses. In the church for the family portraits I used a 4 light set up with a strong backlight to provide a dynamic set up, spicing up otherwise typical shots. Finally for the reception, I set up two lights on each side of the dance floor, one with a beauty dish, and 2 more at the back of the hall directed towards the dance floor.

Photo Notes:

This wedding was shot nearly 80% on the 35mm f/1.4 L lens. I absolutely loved it. Mixing this lens with the 85mm f/1.8 and my tilt-shifts made it so easy to play with focus throughout my entire focal length set up.

Gear Used:

Canon 5D MKII

Canon 24mm TS-E f/3.5 L lens

Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens

Canon 35mm f/1.4 L lens

Canon 45mm f/2.8 TS-E lens

Canon 24mm f/3.5 TS-E lens

Edit:

Swapped out photographs for larger resolution. I think I may keep this format for future posts.

Wedding: Jenn & Tyler’s Wedding

Jenn and Tyler’s wedding was my first in Greek Orthodox shooting. The event was absolutely beautiful. From the location near downtown Chicago to the ornate details of the church inside, it was a spectacle to be amazed by. After pushing through the most torrential downpour I have ever driven through (as an aside, it was one of the rare times that I felt genuinely happy with the folks on the road as everyone put on their hazards, then proceeded to drive slowly and carefully) I arrived at the Church and everyone seemed cool, calm, and relaxed for the gorgeous ceremony. I had to give it to the couple, even when three quarters of the way through the ceremony it was announced that their outdoor reception was not going to happen despite having tents available due to flooding in the area, they remained calm and happy. It was a beautiful thing to see!

Lighting:

The lighting in the church was rather standard for places of worship, there was plenty of light to see but just on the low side that you had to make the choice of strobes or high ISO. During private, intimate events such as weddings I almost always choose high ISO settings so I don’t interrupt the service with obnoxious flash bulbs goin’ off. With the f/2.8 and below this was not much of a challenge. Now, as I mentioned, the reception was no longer located outdoors under canopy outside but rather located in the attached school’s basement. Unfortunately this left me with only two strobes for a large, enclosed, dark area. I took the light mods off of one entirely and bumped up the power to full on the beauty dish modded strobe. All in all they were a bit stylistic but turned out rather well and fun.

Photo Notes:

As this was my first Greek Orthodox wedding, the priest(s) took me through a quick run through of the ceremony and gave me places to be for specific shots. That’s not something I’m typically used to though it worked out for the most part. Knowing it was going to be in a massive place such as this with a ceremony I was not accustomed to, I did make sure that I had the 70-200mm on me at all times. This was a life saver. There were a few shots were I probably would have set up differently for had it been on my own but I was happy with the results given the circumstances.

Gear Used:

Canon 5D MKII

Canon 17-40mm f/4.0 L Lens

Canon 24mm TS-E f/3.5 L lens

Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L Lens

Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens

The Arrival of the 45mm TS-E

Introducing the Canon 45mm f/2.8 TS-E Lens for all your tilting and shifting needs!

The first shot from the Canon 45mm f/2.8

The obligatory ”first shot of Arwen with a new lens” photograph.

Photo Notes:

I am in serious love with this lens. Major. Despite it apparently scaring Arwen (see above photo). It arrived beautifully packed in it’s box from BHPhotoVideo. Despite not being listed with a lens hood and case, they were there. These were just a few really quick snap shots before I go and clean for my birthday girl’s (Elena turned 25 yesterday!) party. Interesting tidbit: despite off and on rumors there is no clear update for this lens coming soon and it is actually not part of the Canon L series despite it’s amazing glass and wonderful colors. I am looking forward to a last, loving relationship with this one and you can expect a full on review soon!

Gear Used:

Canon 5D MKII

Canon 45mm TS-E f/2.8 lens

Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens

Concert Photos: Fever Marlene Live At Turner Hall Ballroom

Fever Marlene ended the night at the 2011 WAMI Awards at the Turner Hall Ballroom in Milwaukee, WI. After a night of great performances they wrapped everything together extremely well. I had a great time meeting all sorts of talented musicians, bands, and folks involved with the music industry. It was a fantastic time (which I have to thank Alex Wilson – Blues Artist of the Year – for inviting me!).

I broke out the tilt-shift, which I am becoming a huge fan of doing so, at the concert and I loved the results. I feel it adds that extra bit of focused emotion to the shots to replicate the feelings the band is portraying and imposing on the audience.

Lighting And Set:

The stage was set up for the WAMI Awards so not necessarily ideally positioned for the artists. You can see in the last photo here that they’re a little further back and that the WAMI Award slideshow is in fact still up. However, Turner Hall is a brilliant place to shoot and the awards were for the music artists so they definitely had the positions done pat of where they can ideally set up for an awards show and concert on the same stage. The lighting was brilliant. A bit on the dimmer side but plenty of light to shoot with lower amounts of grain from the ISO settings. I felt comfortable enough to shoot with the TS-E 24mm which is a f/3.5 rather than having the freedom to stop down to the f/1.8 of the 85mm. This was a stroke of luck for me as these were the only two lenses I had at the time. They had some serious reds going on during their sets but it was nothing completely terrible and I ended up having some fun with it during the tilt-shift period.

Photo Notes:

I did not go to the show intending to shoot a band. I went there to meet people in the industry and give support to Alex Wilson, seriously go check out his link above; he’s a phenomenal blues artist and has his own post coming soon. I actually ended up approaching one of the coordinators I met on previously in the night and asked if I could take photographs of Fever Marlene after their first song. They really blew me away and had a great energy that I felt my trigger finger itching to snap a few good ones. Looking back I probably could have just started shooting as there were a couple of other photogs, namely using flash, shooting away but I was erring on the side of caution and not burning bridges. I had a great time and wanted to continue my relationship with WAMI, the bands, and the people behind the scenes. Fever Marlene only played a few of songs and I only shot for two of them but it was a blast nonetheless.

Gear Used:

Canon 5D MKII

Canon 24mm TS-E f/3.5 L lens

Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens

Check ‘Em Out!

Fever Marlene

http://www.fevermarlene.com/

Fever Marlene: Twitter

Fever Marlene: Facebook

Japan Relief: 1 Hour Donations

If you have seen my facebook page then you have heard what I plan on doing. The people of Japan need our help: citizens and rescue teams alike. I am offering $200 1 hour photoshoot sessions with all of that money going to the Red Cross.

I’d hope this would simply be understood but I want to assure you that what I am doing here is not a self-promotion at all. While it would be great I am not looking for new leads or repeat business. In fact if I could somehow take my name out of all of it, I would. Something that comes to mind is an anecdote that has been told to me over the years. It’s a great line in Superman the movie where Clark’s father tells a young Clark Kent when he is upset about having to hide his powers while playing football. He says,

“[...] That is, you are here for a reason. I don’t know whose reason it is, or whatever the reason… maybe it’s… I don’t know…. but I do know one thing: it’s not to score touchdowns.”

I don’t feel that I am superman. I do feel that this is something we can all take to heart when thinking about all the things we do in life. I have often admired those who have dropped everything and taken up photojournalism to spread the word of what is happening in the world a la the amazingly talented photographers ostentatiously aggregated at The Big Picture. While I am not at a point in life to be able to do that, I do feel that I am able to help.

It comes down to this, an awesome way for you to get those photographs that you have been wanting and needing for a bit of time now and to do something wonderful for the world. I’m going to break this down into a few sections that will hopefully explain how everything will go down this next week.

The Situation:

Not that “Situation”, this one actually means something. Last Friday an earthquake, which scaled at 9.0 on the Richter scale, blasted 8o miles off the coast of Japan. This is one of the largest known quakes in Japan’s modern history and one of the largest in recent years globally. Not long after, due to the quake, a tsunami washed over many parts of the coast of Japan destroying villages and people’s lives. The footage online is obscene, watching it you feel as though something like this cannot possibly be real. It is. In fact, it is very real. The death toll is still climbing, the amount missing still not entirely known. Nuclear disaster seems nearly imminent and we can only pray to whatever God or gods or positive spiritual entity in which you believe that they are able to stave off such a disaster.

However, there is good. Human nature is good, the Red Cross gives on average 91 cents on the dollar that is donated to them. Artists abound are donating their time and effort in donating money for these causes. It is times like these that make you want to step up and start making a difference. I feel as if this is my time to help in the way that I know I can.

The What:

$200 1 hour long sessions in which all of the proceeds will be donated to the Red Cross for relief in Japan. I don’t care what this session is for (within reason, of course;). If you want this to be for your Engagement Shoots, awesome. If you want to take concert shots, great. Studio shots? Fantastic. Headshots? Yes. Fashion shoots for a portfolio? Perfect.

I only have a few stipulations and I will list those later. The point is, if you have a photographic need of any kind, now is the time to take advantage of this. Sessions that are typically $250 are discounted and all of those funds. Every last penny. It’s going to help those in need by this disaster.

The When:

Sessions need to be booked by next Wednesday, March 23rd 2011, and paid for in full by next Friday, March 25th 2011. Sessions need to be fulfilled before the end of August, 2011.

The Who:

You. Bring yourself, bring friends, bring lovers, bring enemies. It doesn’t matter. Just get ready to have an awesome time for a great cause.

The Where:

Unfortunately, and this is one of those stipulations, this deal is limited to those in the greater Milwaukee and Chicago areas. If I can easily make it to you, by my judgment, by car from Milwaukee then please. Participate. Unfortunately, I cannot simply afford to travel and donate all proceeds. However, if you do want to pay for my travel costs and then the $200 on top for a donation and it is able to be scheduled out, then by all means I am down and I am game.

The Fine Print:

Why am I putting a time limit on this? Honestly, I don’t know the response. This could flop and I may not get any responses. Or this could go even crazier than I expected. Without this being my full time profession I only have a limited amount of time that I can physically devote to sessions.

Why paid for in full in advance? I simply cannot afford to foot a bill on this one. The sole purpose of all of this is to raise money that I would not typically be able to donate myself for a situation that is heartbreaking to me. This is also about commitment, it would be one thing for me to track someone down to pay me for services I have given but I feel it sort of breaks a whole new slew of ethical violations to make me track someone down – for whatever reason – for a charitable cause. That doesn’t really matter though, you want to donate.

Why is it that only awesome places like Milwaukee and Chicago get to take advantage of this? Like I stated before, it is due to travel costs. I cannot afford to travel much without compensation and this is not about being compensated. It’s about giving.

Finally, these have to be new requests. If I have been in talks with you about a photoshoot, engagement shoot, etc then this offer, unfortunately, does not apply. I sincerely appreciate your desire to donate but it is simply too complicated for me to logistically tackle this on my own if this is not a separate entity. This is new photoshoots that are being proposed to me starting today and going through next Wednesday. I want the sole purpose of these shoots to have originated with the idea of giving to this fund in mind.

What do you receive?

The last point to address is what are your receivables for doing this. I am so grateful that you are looking into doing this that I want to send you a specialized receipt stating what I have done with the money and how awesome you are for helping out. On top of that you will receive a proof of delivery for the $200 to Red Cross. Thirdly, you will receive your photographs, ALL usable photographs (something usually reserved for Weddings & Engagements) from the shoot. The number of these entirely depends on set up time, repetition and similarity of shots, and technical details such as blur, focus, color, lighting, acts of God, etc. But trust me, it’s more than you would typically get in any other scenario. You deserve it.

In closing, please help me help those in need. Look up this situation that is going on. Watch the videos, see the photographs, hear their stories. If you think you have a photographic need in the near future please contact me via this blog, my facebook, twitter @aarcusphoto with hashtag: #ArcJapanRelief, e-mail at adam.arcus.photo@gmail.com, mobile phone, tin-cans, morsecode. Whatever and however you can. And finally, spread the word – e-mail this to your friends, lovers, coworkers, enemies, cousins, barbers, etc. The more we do together, the more we can raise. If you don’t chose to do this through me, look up those other artists, donate to Red Cross’ text method for donating $10 automatically by texting REDCROSS to 90999, go through Google’s crisis response at http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/japanquake2011.html , other artists: go and do this for your talents as well! We can make a difference.

Las Vegas Exposed

Time for Las Vegas long exposures! Done solely with the 17-40mm and the 24mm TS-E, they were rather enjoyable as wide angled landscapes. I walked around the night after the hospitality event I took photos for with my boss and had a good time experimenting with tilt shift long exposure – I thought regular long exposure was difficult to expose… sheesh- and flash mixed in with long exposures. All in all I would call this a successful night of photography.

I really wish to go back when the weather is nicer (above freezing perhaps?) and just do nothing one night except walk and take long exposure shots of Vegas. I stuck pretty close to the same area as it was so cold and I had no jacket or gloves. I had also wanted to get some long exposures of the water show in front of the Bellagio but ended up with just the ‘ho-hum’ shot you see below as they closed it due to weather! OH, the last one here is a panorama so be sure to click on it to get the full effect.

Though this photograph of Paris was certainly what I was going for!

For the most part my aim here was simply to show the extreme lights and feel of Vegas at night. Even in the coldest part of the year in non-peak season the town seemed so alive. It is ironic as they are going through an extended financial crisis mainly dealing with real estate foreclosure. So here is to Vegas getting its groove back and blowing your socks off at some point this year.

Gear Used:

Canon 5D Mk II

Canon 17-40mm f/4.0 L lens

Canon 24mm f/3.5 TS-E L lens

Lumopro LP120 flash

Manfrotto Tripod + Head

Mr. $ Mrs. Smith: Live at the Rain @ Palms, Las Vegas, NV

For me this concert was my first major event to photograph for a corporate outing. I was all over the place doing many different tasks. Shooting Lyssa and Austin from Mr. $ Mrs. Smith was an awesome challenge with dynamic lighting. I even ended up loving a photograph that had majority red light in it! In fact that shot above is one of my favorites I’ve taken in a concert. Her smile is brilliant. I brought my 24mm TS-E lens and she made an appearance during the concert. It was shocking how well she worked. My next two lenses are absolutely going to be the updated L series of the 45mm and 90mm TS-E. The versatility of these lenses blows my mind.

Of course, in the end I always hit up the workhorse that is the 85mm. The portraits that it delivers are simply stunning. Austin looked like a badass rock star with the oversized sunglasses (and evening donning a spectator’s cowboy hat for a refrain).

I wanted a couple of shots to show off how big the stage was and give a feeling for the grandness of the evening. I took out the 17-40 and threw it all the way at 17mm and had a few good action shots as a result. Lyssa really has amazing stage presence as well as an awesome beauty that is fun to capture.

I had also set up an off-camera strobe to collect crowd photographs for the event which was going off pretty well to start. I was surprised actually how well because it was my first time doing this in a crowd but the results were extremely dynamic and fun. They certainly portrayed the atmosphere that was capturing everyone to the T. Unfortunately, the flash was bulldozed by someone who happened to not see it despite my efforts to keep it in the furthest corner away from the action. This resulted in a broken stand and some battle wounds for the Lumopro. I haven’t completed testing with a new set of batteries but initially the flash seems fine… which is more than I can say for the stand.

Austin and Lyssa nail the vocals on every track with Mario, Adam, and Jason providing a rhythm section that is phenomenal. You have to truly be talented to cover the range that they did in the fashion in which they did it. Go check out their facebook page and give them a chance. You’ll be dying to see them next time you’re in Vegas.

Gear Used:

Canon 5D Mk II

Canon 24mm L f/3.5 TS-E Lens

Canon 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens

Canon 17-40mm f/4 L Lens

Lumopro lp160 Flash

Live Chatter:

To me it seems like a huge undertaking, performing in front of an audience you don’t know with songs you’re not sure they know for a corporate event. In Las Vegas. At a club. Mr. $ Mrs. Smith (yes, that is a dollar sign instead of an ampersand) pulled it off with marvel. For starters, they took typical pop/R&B/hip-hop hits and performed them live, as a band. That is huge. 90% of these songs were remixed electronically in a studio with voices that sound very little to what they really are. That does not necessarily mean that they are bad songs but rather that they are very hard to replicate live.

The lighting in Rain was such a great challenge. There were the LCD TVs coming out from every direction. The lights were not mostly whites, blues, and yellows but every color imaginable. There was a lot of pink/rosa and reds, oranges, and purples to fill that out. It turns out that I don’t hate pink as much as I hate red. Pink looks intentional, red just – as always – looks awful on skin tones.

And yes. There was even random bouts of fire being spewed over the crowd whilst shooting. Challenging indeed. But it was a blast.

The Slopes: A Travel Photoventure

That My Conditions Are In

This past week – as much as it was about skiing, food, drink, and good times – was about pushing more bounds as a photographer. I read recently an article that described how a photographer should excel in only one form of photography. Technique, as he put it, “is something mature photographers simply get past”. This rather astounded me as I typically follow this fellow and agree with a good amount that is written about. I however, extremely disagree with this statement. How can you be the best at something if you do not know the basics of everything? I am not saying to go and perfect each style, though surely at that point you would be a pretty damn good photographer, what I am saying though is that you should know how they got there.

Long Exposure: High ISO

What kind of lighting was used, why was it used, what effect did it have, what ISO range, rough speed, depth of field are utilized frequently? Is it a standard or a tilt shift lens? Why was this particular angle chosen? If you choose only a specific set within all of these questions and go with that, then that is all you have. Having a brand versus perfecting only one technique are completely different monsters.

During the Day

This weekend was about making moving, emotional images with a prime lens that I rarely have used in the open. My Canon 24mm f/3.5 TS-E L lens. I bought this a short while ago knowing that this was not a focal length that I was familiar with and that I was unaware of how tilt-shift would affect it. Most of my tilt-shift experience has been on the View Camera or in the 45mm to 90mm focal lengths. I felt this would be a fantastic way for me to break my binds and develop a new technique. The results are below. Let me know… did I crash and burn or was there success in my efforts? My favorite is at the end.

And let me know what do you think: Is perfecting merely a single technique the same as having a brand? Or is there more to it then that?

The One That Got Away

Which in this scenario, is definitely acceptable and provided me with one of those perfect imperfect images. I went skiing this past weekend – first time and I didn’t die! W00T! - and on our drive back from breakfast in a near white out snow storm a bunch of what seemed to have been pheasants (birdwatchers, let me know if you recognize this one) were in the road. My camera was on and ready but alas! I had left my lens cap on. I dashed it off and a fraction of a second later had the 24mm TS-E lens snapping away at the chaos of the 8 or 10 birds in our path. I only took three photographs, and in my opinion only one turned out. I had originally wanted a brilliant shot of the driver and a bird that was flying along side the car but my gaze was taken and my lens delayed just enough to get the photograph below. For some reason it really grabs my eye. The underexposed corners along with the telephone lines jutting through the frame. The snow/ice mixture on the cars window mucking up the edges enough to push your eye through the other side of the photograph. Lines of snow cutting through the foreground of the animal. A bird’s contorted flight beckoning to be felt by others as a flee for its life. It really spoke to me and I want to know: does it do the same for you?

Have you had this type of “success” before? A seemingly accidental photograph intentionally taken. It is, for me, a rare occurrence to enjoy one of these this thoroughly but I find myself invested in this one.

The One That Got Away: A Bird In Flight

GEAR USED:

Canon 5D Mk II

Canon 24mm TS-E L Lens

A Portrait

My fiancée is wonderful. When I get new gear in she lets me try it all on her and get used to it before the professional debut. It is an added bonus that really helps quite a lot. Here in this shot, I just received my numerous new gear from Midwest Photo Exchange. If you know me, you know I rarely use flash. In fact for the longest time I detested it. However, I have come to realize, for a while now, that there are major bonuses and awesome ways to use it. I love studio lighting and have used that whenever I could. To me, flash just gave your photographs a horrible flare with bad color correction. However, shot through an umbrella with the correct gels or off a reflector does wonders for fill or sole lighting.

Again, I will do a gear review of my new stuff after I used it for a bit but for now here is one of my favorite shots of Elena:

My Girl

Gear Used:
Canon 5D MKII
Canon 24mm f/3.5 TS-E L Lens
Lumopro 160 Flash
Westco White Satin 43″ Umbrella