Video: Aspen Landscaping Advertisement

Aspen is leader in full-solution commercial landscaping in the NJ/NY area.  They have just added an irrigation division to their business and I was hired to shot an advertisement announcing this new venture.  

I worked with Mark (the project manager) and Angelo (spokesperson) to produce the video.  This was the first time they had ever put together a video like this and it was fun working through the requirements and messaging with them to arrive at this final product.  From what I understand from them, this is also pretty unusual in the landscape business to have a video like this so this should be a nice differentiator for Aspen Landscaping.

Amy's Headshots

I've been using a new service called Thumbtack to obtain business.  So far, so good.  The way it works is that a person in need of a professional service, like photography perhaps, would post a request for...oh, I don't know - headshots let's say.  As a service provider of said headshots, I have the opportunity to bid on the request.  If the requester likes the quote and my profile, they can respond and offer me the gig.  Amy did just that.

Amy's an actor in NYC and her agency wanted some new headshots done for her portfolio.  There were some pretty specific things they were after so we focused on that first and then did some other things to play a bit later in the shoot.

I called on Nicole, a makeup artist I'd worked with in the past.  She's great!  Very reliable, does great work and is always willing to help with more than make-up duty.  

We started with a variety of colors and tops on black since part of the requirement was to get some clean shots of Amy with this variety.  These are some of my favorites.

Whenever I do headshots, I like to get some that probably lean more toward beauty shots vs. a traditional headshot.  Here are a few that I liked of that set.

One of the fist things Amy mentioned to me when I met her in person is that she is challenged with *not* smiling.  I had to stop and think about that for a minute since I would say its much more common for people to struggle with having a nice, natural smile on camera.  Sounded like a challenge to me to come away with at least a few for her that she was a bit more serious.  As you can see from the featured image in the set above, she nailed it.  She even knew of a technique that I believe Peter Hurley invented called the "squinch".  Essentially its 'squinting your eye lids in a way that portrays confidence'.  We had fun playing with the look.

We then moved onto another location.  The set of three above are actually shot in natural light (which I don't tend to do very often).  I've shot in this location before and really like the options it gives you as an artist.

Only a few feet away from the previous set with Amy sitting on the bench, there was a post I had her stand near for a few images with a blazer and a set of glasses.  Again, with the goal of giving the agency some options with making Amy more marketable.

Finally, a few from the same location as the blazer but with just the green top and a bit more casual.  It was a real pleasure working with Amy for the first time.  She is as nice and down-to-earth as she is beautiful.  As the shoot went on, she also provided laughs "on the set".  I'll leave you with a few silly faces that came through in the session that got us all laughing.  

Bottle & Bottega: Team building Event

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’ve recently teamed up with Bottle & Bottega which is a paint and sip studio where you can bring some wine, food, friends and they have artists on hand to help you create your own masterpiece on canvas.

I tagged along to a team building event with Bottle & Bottega for Bayer at the Skytop Lounge in the Poconos.  The plan was for me to shoot video with the goal of capturing the event, featuring the painting and teamwork and ultimately the final mural the group put together.  In addition, I planned to interview as many people as I could get to sit down with me to give a sense of what their experience was like.  It all went even better than expected.

Upon arrival, I noticed one thing that was missing for me: a space to interview others.  I scanned the property and what I ended up with was an outside setup that unless I would have told you it was outside, you wouldn’t have known any different.  It happened to be a pretty hot/humid night so that was a little tough but everyone made it through the interview without a hitch.

After a couple of rounds with Bottle & Bottega, I have a finished product that they love and I’m proud to show.  I look forward to more events with this group! 

Music Licensed through Marmoset: Love and Oceans (Instrumental) by The Dimes

Varley Headshots

Repeat clients are the best!  Steve and Christine wanted some updated headshots for their  professional profiles.  I haven’t seen them much since I shot their wedding back in May.  I arrived at their house and turned their living room into a little studio with backdrop, lights, and all the fixin's.

We started with one light for Steve and that seemed to work pretty well.  This was the first time I was shooting with this black backdrop and I really like how it keeps the focus on the subject.  These are my favorites of Steve.

For Christine, I added a second light, otherwise it was pretty much the same setup.  Steve was behind the scenes keeping Christine smiling.  These are the ones I liked best for Christine.  There’s something about the middle-left image that I really connected with.  There’s a real strength that comes through in the expression.

As I was about to leave I asked if they wanted a few together.  Nice! 

The Three Doctors: Raising Hope & Health

Earlier this year, I was connected with an organization called The Three Doctors Foundation.  They were holding an annual fund raiser with a theme of "Raising Hope & Health".  I was hired to shoot a video that showcased the event and something they could use to promote their organization.

My initial contact was with Windy White and she was very helpful and informative throughout the process.  This was held at the Hyatt Hotel in New Brunswick NJ and featured Pat Battle (NBC News) as the emcee for the event along with Rose Rock (mother of Chris Rock) and Sherri Shepherd as honoree’s that evening.

I approached this project with storytelling in mind.  Using a technique I learned from Stillmotion, I researched the organization and learned as much as I could without having much direct access to the individuals I'd meet that evening.  I derived the following keywords for the event: perseverance, inspirational, community, mentorship, health.

With the keywording done, I began to shape how I would cover the event.  There was a cocktail hour and then presentations.  Fortunately, I was able to interview the three doctors individually along with scholarship winners from various universities.  These proved to be invaluable.  Ultimately, I created two versions of the material.  A short version (see below - https://vimeo.com/102056542) and an extended version (coming soon) showing more of the material from the presentations.

Big thanks to Steve Kang and helping cover this event with me.  

Bottle & Bottega's Berkeley Heights, NJ studio

In preparation for a grand opening of a new location, and in partnership with Bottle & Bottega, I was able to grab some photos of the new studio.  They have a wonderful set of art work on the wall, lots of open space for painting, and plenty of supplies to allow you to get your creative juices flowing.  Overall, its a very inviting space and I'm sure it will be hosting many fabulous painting parties!

I look forward to many future events in this space.  Its in a great location and from what I've heard many parties have already been booked for this space.  To find out more about Bottle & Bottega, visit their site.

America's Night Of Hope Event

Back in January of 2013 I reconnected on a shoot of mine with a high school friend, Eric Forsythe.  I found out during that time that he is a full-time, very accomplished photographer out of Houston, TX. We've been in touch ever since.

A few months ago an opportunity came up for us to work a pretty large event together. Eric is the main photographer for Joel Osteen and they had an event called "America's Night Of Hope" planned for Yankee Stadium on June 6th.  Eric asked me to help shoot it.

A chance to work with a friend and all access to Yankee Stadium!?  That's a "yes"!  I picked up Eric at his hotel in the city and we parked near a train station that would take us right to the stadium.  Once we arrived, we met with the other photographers and marketing folks to go over the game plan for photography coverage during the event.

They ran through a rehearsal which we used to get an idea of placement and timing.  Very helpful.  Shortly after that we grabbed a little food before heading off to capture the main event. I was set to cover the stage from the stands and could roam anywhere to get the best shot.  Eric and one other photographer were on either side of the stage.

Composite of 4 images.  I'm certainly not a Photoshop wizard but this definitely gives the full scope of a sold-out Yankee Stadium.

Nice event!  Joel sold out Yankee Stadium (approximately 50,000 seats) so I'd call it a success even if that were the only measurement.  Looking forward to future work with Eric.

Marianne & Michael's Wedding Video Edit

You never know what a new connection will bring you.  I start with this because this is how I came to edit the video for Michael & Marianne’s wedding video.  I reached out to Steve Kang, a Facebook acquaintance that I knew from some photography groups we’re both a part of.  I asked him to lunch because it seemed like we were bidding on the same types of jobs and I asked him if there’s anything he’d like to collaborate on.  Turns out, he needed some help with an edit on a wedding he shot and had been sitting for a while.  We agreed that I’d do the edit in trade for him helping me with some production work (blog post and details coming soon).

Like so many things, it just wasn’t that simple.  Most would “Yada, yada” over the best part and say, “Everything went great, the edit was easy, and nothing went wrong along the way”.  If you want that version, skip to the last couple sentences.  As you can guess, that wasn’t my experience.  To start, I had already been behind on some other projects so I didn’t even look at this material until a week after I had the files.  Shortly after I started the edit another job came up (which is what Steve helped me with) and now I’m behind by two jobs.  Oh boy.  Its a nice problem to have but I hate the feeling of the ball being in my court and owing someone.  I want it done so I can move onto the next thing.

Meanwhile, I’ve been working on changing my technical workflow in my business. Painful to go through with the promise of better organization in the future.  While I was hard at work on the edit of the wedding, my editing hard drive failed.  Yikes!  Not. Happy.

I look up places locally to recover data and found one not too far from the house.  Fortunately, they were able to recover all the data off the drive.  I, of course, had a back-up of all the data on that drive except for the wedding edit.  I got the data back and now have a back-up of everything and also have a nice video to share of Marianne & Michael’s wedding.  I’ve posted a small portion of the edit here since the full version is about 30 minutes long.  Enjoy!

Christine & Steve's Wedding

Steve was a neighbor of mine and has been a friend since he lived around the corner.  He’s someone that shares a love of technology and has a similar pallet for beer & wine to mine.  I was honored that he asked me to photograph his wedding which was held at the beautiful Ninety Acres in Gladstone, NJ.

I had not met Christine so I invited the couple to a local diner to chat about their wedding plans.  They explained that it would be a small, intimate affair, no bridal party - just them.  In fact, the public event almost didn’t happen.  They had planned to elope and then realized they’d be missing out on an opportunity to celebrate with close family and friends.

The skies were very ominous that day and the forecast called for thunderstorms.  In NJ its usually a good idea to have an outdoor and indoor plan.  The staff at Ninety Acres set up inside, just in case.

At the time Christine & Steve arrived we had a nice showing of sunshine and were able to get some photos.  As you can see from the attire, they chose a unique, 'out of the magazine' kind of feel.

This venue has some pretty amazing views and is set back off the main road probably 1/2 mile and even the drive up to Ninety Acres feels privileged.  They also have a unique decor inside which I used as my backdrop for some of the images. 

Both Christine & Steve remained cool and collected throughout the day.  Their connection comes through clearly in their interaction with each other.  As the newly married couple, they had access to a "members only" area which we used for a few minutes prior to the ceremony starting.

As luck would have it, the skies parted and gave just enough of a break to allow them to have the ceremony outside.  There was a complete downpour shortly after the ceremony finished.

Christine & Steve included a sand ceremony to symbolize the joining of two families and featured his two daughters, Emily and Meredith.

And they're married...

Some of the kids from the wedding...

And the food...

I used some cork and a menu with the Ninety Acre logo to feature the rings...

One of the final images of the night.  Its hard to tell from this perspective however, they are inside the wine cellar which is a temperature controlled room.  Special thanks to Megan and Vince (bartender) for allowing us to get inside the room to make this image.  And of course a big thank you to Christine & Steve for allowing me to be a part of your special day.

Credits:
Event Coordinator: Megan Dashio @ Ninety Acres 
Florist: Laura Clare

Headshots for Shashi

I've been fortunate enough this year to have a pretty steady stream of work.  I received an email not too long ago to do some portraits for Shashi that ultimately she wanted to be able to send to her family in India.

When I arrived, I asked if she had any pictures of herself either in her place or online and she didn't - hence, the request for headshots :-)

Shashi was a self proclaimed introvert and seemed a little uneasy in front of the camera so we took a little time getting to know each other.  It didn't take long to discover that she is a writer in her off time in addition to her daytime work.  Throughout her life, she's interview some interesting people and talking about these interviews, is what I discovered, made her comfortable in front of the camera and allowed us to get some genuine smiles from her.  Shashi, it was nice working with you and I hope your family enjoys the images we were able to create.

Model Headshots for Melissa

Last year, I shot for the first time working with Melissa and we hit it off.  She’s so great to work with and this session was just as awesome.  We proved again that spending some time before the shoot going over various looks via Pinterest and choosing outfits and accessories is a valuable activity. 

I snapped a couple shots of Amanda & Melissa before we started shooting.  She has so much hair that it turned out to be a bit of a blessing and a curse.  Styling all that hair takes time!

Prep for hair and make-up

Images that resonate with me have a simple composition and draw your eye directly to the subject.  I have a pretty simple lighting set up here that helps achieve the look I'm after.

Simple lighting and non-distracting background keeps your eye on Melissa

Alternate looks but still keeping it simple

Finally got to use my fan! - Thanks Amanda for standing in to help.

Hands up!

Hair everywhere. One of my favorites of the day was this composure where Melissa created her own frame.

The location I used was a little different than what I've used in the past.  I used a service called Breather where you can rent a small (and I mean Manhattan small) room by the hour.  Its a great business idea and someone else suggested this as an option so I thought I’d give it a shot.  Once we navigated our way to the room, I noticed this set of stairs and made that a second shooting location.  This turned out to be a bonus of shooting on the weekend since nobody was traveling up and down the stairs.

Stairs and railing helped to create some interest in the composure

And a few more back in the room to finish off the shoot.  A big thanks to Melissa for coming out to NYC from Boston and for Amanda for showing us her talents on hair and make-up.  I'm looking forward to the next shoot!

Relaxing on the couch

Clothing Promotion: Strong Minds & Body

Round two shooting for a person I've only met through some email exchanges.  Its a little unusual with photography for things to happen this way but the reason this works is that the client isn't the subject of my images.  The lovely Kait is.  I first met Kait on a tattoo shoot (surprise there) and we've connected a couple more times to shoot - one of which was this one to grab some photos of some casual clothing options for a brand called Strong Minds Apparel.

Here are some images from our recent shoot.

Always awesome working together.  I'll have more images from Kait coming up soon...

WPPI: Vegas 2014 + Photo Shoot

I made another trek out to Vegas this year for WPPI which is an annual conference for wedding and portrait photographers...and video.  They're increasing their coverage of the video world which was nice to see.

I attended several classes during my time there and came away with new inspiration and ideas to implement.  My interest was a mix of business, marketing, and some technical classes.  Some sessions were with a very large crowd by well known photographers and others were in a smaller venue by lesser known (at least to me) professionals.  I really preferred the smaller sessions.  Two reasons I enjoyed these more: 1) They aren't trying to sell you anything and 2) They have so much more meat to their presentations because - you guessed it - they're not trying to sell you anything!

A few tangible take-away's for me: 

1. There are marketing opportunities everywhere.  Watch for them and take the time to think about how to approach them in a unconventional way.
2. Find ways to partner with other businesses that provide them with nothing but an upside.
3. Stay organized with regard to obtaining and utilizing contacts.  
4. For portraits: Own it.  The difference between an okay portrait and fantastic one is the direction you give and the connection you make with the client. 
5. Choose your lens wisely to tell your story.  This year there were several presenters talking about being deliberate about lens choice to make your images stand out.  

There were many more but these are some that stuck with me.

While I was in Vegas I arranged for a photo shoot to happen.  I planned this out months ahead of time and worked with the model to stylize the shoot.  I also had a make-up artist (MUA) which makes all the difference in the final output.

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Cody at work to work his magic on Dahlia.

We started with headshots and worked our way into other poses and looks.  Here are some from the session.

Natural light off the Vegas sun! Shot with the Nikon D610 & the 50mm 1.4

A few more looks from Dahlia.  This cat mask and the meoow shirt was part of the collaboration on the shoot.

Proof that a good team can make for some great images.  

Model: Dahlia Saint
MUA: Cody Park

Agile NYC Promo Video

Back in September, I connected with Joe Krebs again to shoot material that would be used for a promotional video for the Agile NYC event that happens annually.  As you can imagine, there's a lot of planning and effort that goes into putting a day together that includes speakers, vendors, workshops, entertainers, keynote speakers, etc.  My role was to capture the day and showcase the vibe and the energy of both the presenters and the speakers.

As I started to think about what I wanted to see in a video, I knew I wanted to have Joe anchor the structure of the video so I had him talk about what the structure of the current event was and talk a little about what might be coming up next year.  I used this as a jumping off point for other material I show.  As was typical for this kind of thing, there's A LOT of material that I shoot that I don't show.  It gives you options as you start to tell the story and it can also provide ways to parse up smaller bits to feature in other ways.

After several revisions and working closely with Joe on the final output, I'm happy to show the finished result.  Check out the Agile NYC page for more information and future event details.

Tuthill Wedding

Back in September of 2013 I was asked to capture the ceremony with video for Emily & Christopher.  It feels like so long ago at this point that I had initial discussions with the bride's sister, Alyssa.

The goal was to capture a sense of being there and put together all the material that I would capture in a relatively short period of time.  The ceremony was about 25 minutes (and it feels even shorter when you're focused on capturing the event vs. attending).  I was a one-man show for this wedding so I was running quite a bit during the ceremony.

I arrived about an hour early to get set up and one task I had when the groom arrived was to mic him up.  When reviewing the audio, I noticed that I captured these really nice moments between Christopher and Emily during the ceremony.  Unfortunately, they were just too low for me to integrate into the video.  He whispered things like, "You look beautiful - I love your dress!" and "...are you nervous?".  Very cute.

Congratulations to you guys.  It was a pleasure working with you and your family.

Crossfit - Texas Style

For me, it wouldn't be time off unless I'm also scheduling a shoot.  I took a visit to see family in Texas over a weekend and planned to also visit my sister & brother-in-law's Crossfit they own in Allen, TX.  Its called Crossfit FX TX.

I was given free reign to shoot whatever I want - something every photographer loves - since it gives me a chance to just explore anything I see that's interesting.

For their club, they have things divided into different divisions: Pink Barbell, Crossfit and for kids, etc.  I got started with the Pink Barbell group which happened to be a couple lovely ladies that can certainly lift more than I can so I made sure they were okay with me taking pictures before I started - kidding! They knew I would be there.

Next I kind of just moved my lights where i needed them to be and started shooting.  The vibe in the gym was very relaxed and everyone was very approachable.  Probably why they have so many consistent members return again and again.

Someone taking on a WOD (workout of the day)

My sister brought in some donuts from Max's Donut Shop (a local favorite).  As you can see, they are Texas size!

Rob was pushing some decent weight here.  As you can see from his face, he was pretty determined!

This is a client of Dylan's (my brother-in-law) and as you can see from her face, its hard work.

Thanks for the opportunity to capture what happens on any given Saturday at Crossfit FX TX.  I look forward to more shoots in the future.

Rose's Highline

Shortly after shooting with Stephanie, I was introduced to Rose who works with the same modeling agency, Aqua Model Management, as Stephanie.  We met in mid October and I opted for a place I’ve shot several times now and just love it for the flexibility and diverse set of scenes that can be created in this environment: The Highline.

As I try to do each time, we started with some simple headshots.  Here are a couple of my favorites.

We then moved into some “casual” - just girl hanging out in the park kind of images.  One thing I learned about Rose while shooting with her is that she’s from Madagascar like one other model I’ve shot with several times - Anna Laura.  Pretty cool. Small world!  Rose also had this ability to turn on a very real looking smile simply by asking.  Harder than you may think.

Next setup wasn’t planned but it was one of those things where I walked by an area that I thought would look pretty nice and snapped this one (after sorting out some technical issues).

Finally, with the fabulous red dress on, captured some powerful images against the darkening sky.

Dark & Moody

One thing that remains the same is that the idea I start with isn't the one I end with.  I’ve come to expect that and I do my best to go with it when a curveball is thrown.  I planned this shoot several months ago with another model and then learned a few days before the shoot that the dates were confused by her and consequently she wasn’t able to make it.  I turn to sites like ModelMayhem when things like this occur.  I posted a modeling opportunity and very soon after that I met Steph.  She came across as very funny and approachable from the initial response and she turned out to be a great choice for this shoot.

The team was small. Steph is the model, Numi on make-up.  It deserves a shout out to Nicholas & Alejandro at Space 4 Shoots.  They have always been very helpful during the shoot.

I like to start with some beauty shots. I find that it helps establish a rapport with the model and hopefully allows for some nice shots of the face in the meantime.

Next up was a shot based on a concept I saw from a Dior ad.  I felt like going for something kind of dark and moody.  We started with the inspiration and moved away from that idea throughout this setup.

As we worked a bit more with this general lighting setup, I wanted to try some product shots with Steph so we used a perfume bottle she brought to the shoot and here are a few of my favorites.  Numi was very helpful as well with suggestions on holding the bottle. It's harder than you think to get something that conveys the right emotion without looking awkward.

Quick outfit change and a new lighting and background setup and I found myself to still be in a product mode so we had her show off a red purse and a black necklace.

For the last set, we dragged in a chair from the waiting room where there was a casting going on for a dance performance (random tidbit).  I thought this layout arrangement below was fun with the legs closed and open.  Lots of fun working with this team.  I hope we can all work together again soon.

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I don't normally post pictures of myself in the blog entries however, I thought this one was kind of funny because I look so serious however, this was taken during a lighting test by someone in the studio and he just happened to catch me at a time when I was probably focused on thinking through the next setup.

Until next time...

Urban Tour

Ralph reached out to me through Facebook and asked if I could help him put together a set of images that would look different than other classmates with a city setting.  I've recently become more familiar with SOHO and opted for that area to shoot in.  As it turns out, it fits well with Ralph's other interest which is fashion. He has a blog that he keeps on the subject. 

We started with a colorful setting in front of a door and wall that has graffiti and some kind of paper mâché. 

To add to the NYC feel, I had him head down the subway stairs and then stop for a break in the Vive la crepe for something to drink. 

We finished with a stroll down the cobble stone street and then to some more formal shots.

Thanks Ralph for letting me show you around SOHO.  We definitely captured the urban vibe of NYC. 

Bohemian Beauty Headshots

Connections, connections.  I like to point out how important this is since it proves to be the way new opportunities present themselves.  We had a great team on this shoot: Alex on make-up, who I met through a friend I used to work with while shooting a wedding, Lauren, Alex's second cousin doing hair who I met on this shoot and of course Stephanie, the model, who I met through Alex.  Stephanie is signed with Aqua Model Management and has been involved with some exciting work recently - appearances on Dr. Oz, work in a Marc Anthony and Wyclef music videos, 50 cent, ESPN, FOX, Style Network, The Heavy, and the list goes on.  Keep an eye on her!  

The location we chose was Bear Mountain in NY.  It turned out to be a half-way point for most of us.  The setting really looked like it would work until, just as we were about to set up (I didn't get a full light stand up) and the park ranger stopped us and said, "Hey, you all have to leave!  Do you have a permit? I thought I told you to leave already."  He wasn't very nice about it and on top of his kind words, he called the local police to make sure we didn't hang around.  Yikes!  We packed up and went to a location that Alex knew of further north in Beacon, NY.

Our second location was "closed" as well but we were all determined to not waste the day so we parked and walked around those pesky things in the way....barricades, I think they're called - haha.  Anyway, let's get to the good stuff.  We scoped things out quickly and found some areas that would work within these grounds and because it was closed, there were no people to hassle us about permits :-) 

The first set of images I like to do are beauty shots.  Stephanie has an instant connection with the camera and has eyes that will melt - you - down!  There are some great behind the scenes (BTS) shots that were captured to give you an idea of how much a pretty location doesn't matter nearly as much as good light.

The catamaran was sitting near where the beauty shots were done and we thought it would be fun for Stephanie to chill out in the arm of the big CAT.

For this shoot we chose a theme of bohemian as you can see more of in these images.  Alex and Lauren did a great job along with Stephanie putting this look together.  Stephanie also has a background in dance so that helped with getting into some interesting positions on the railing. 

The last few from the shoot featuring the bohemian look.  Thanks to all that participated (even Stephanie's mom) and helped make the shoot happen!  I look forward to working with you all again.