The downtown area here is so great for taking a quick photo walk. For this session we went down Main Street just across the walking bridge to Tapawingo Park, a great location for shooting kids and families. I love working in spots where you can get many different looks in the same place. Simply changing an angle or walking 20 feet can get a whole new feel. Tapawingo does exactly this.

I have shot there many times now and I keep finding new little spots. My big discovery on this shoot was simply a picnic table with that was catching a nice balance of direct highlights and soft bounced light. The result being even shadows on most of the face with a large highlight, giving the faces some shape and warmth.

-Michael

I have been wanting to do a project in HDR for a long time now, so when Kyle Burke of 838 sign co. came to me with this truck shoot, it sounded like the perfect candidate. Being the owner of a sign shop, Kyle is always looking for ways to stand out and grab attention. An HDR image will get you attention for sure, so I knew he would like the results.

What HDR does is combine images from multiple exposures to more accurately represent what the human eye sees. This particular image combined 12 different exposures into one 16bit file (as apposed to the standard 8bit). The result is a photo that looks like you can almost step into it. To give some context a standard full-size RAW file from our cameras are 27MB while this HDR image is 88MB. The web resolution you are seeing simply does not do the image quality justice!

The results are way better then my expectations, and I look forward to doing more HDR projects in the future.

-Michael Dick

Spring is here in a big way! I have had some serious studio fever from the winter. So when I went outside with Molly for her senior portraits I really tried to play up the sun in a big way, with a lot of warm glow and lens flair. While it felt great to be shooting outdoors again, what I will probably remember most from Molly’s shoot will be the bubbles.

Molly is into bubbles and brought some of her bubble tools with her. We got a few of the shots I was looking for this way, but Molly had a vision! After many ridiculous-looking (but fun!) attempts it was decided hand-blown bubbles were not cutting it. To rectify the situation, we took a small trip to the store and picked up a few totally professional, completely not little child’s toy, “Super Miracle Bubbles”  bubble guns for the bargain price of $3. Best $3 I ever spent.

-Michael

This week’s major commercial project took place at Rosebud Ranch in Brookston, IN. A naturally beautiful setting and friendly atmosphere sums up my shoot. Thanks to Art, Wendie, Tina, Sharon, Karla, Becky and Wylee (sp?) and all the riders, boarders and students for all the help.