women

Fun Spring Portraits of Heather on Location

Posted by BryCox (Admin)

Photographers love overcast days, because it means they can shoot “naturally,” not doing anything to add or control lighting or even thinking about it sadly. It’s a lazy way to work, and the results are flat and dull images that require layers of “filters” to give them any type of punch or contrast. So for my recent lighting video tutorials for photographers, I photographed Heather on location on an overcast day to share with photographers how to control lighting in any scenario, even on these days with natural dull, overcast light. I like images to pop, to have vibrant colors and have depth in the contrast, but it should be done in the camera and with lighting controlled on the scene.

Interestingly, we where shooting in an area of Salt Lake City that is popular with photographers, and the place was almost over-run with photo shoots everywhere. Photographers were waiting in line to shoot in the same spots, and nowhere did I see anyone controlling their lighting. Every photographer I watched was using the natural dull light of the day, or were using an on-camera flash incorrectly. So it seemed apropos to be doing the exact opposite as everyone else, as part of my master lighting tutorial series.

Heather was such a great model. She moved naturally and gracefully, and had a way of always giving a real expressions throughout the shoot. We had a lot of fun laughing throughout the shoot and it was a blast.

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

I really like this dress of Heather’s too. The color popped against the low-key colors of the area, plus the retro look was a lot of fun, and she made it look great.

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

I also really like that in the images, the place looks empty. We had to find the right angles as well as time images in such a way as to avoid getting people in the shots, because really there were people on all sides of us. However, you would never know it from the images. The place looks empty, and Heather’s looks and expressions were never distracted.© BryCox.com, Bry Cox © BryCox.com, Bry Cox

If you know a photographer, send them to my lighting tutorials. And if you’d like some new portraits, spring is ending and warm weather is here. The studio gardens here at my place are in full bloom and now is the best time to get in for some new portraits. Call me at 801-728-3317 and let’s block some time off to shoot you some great images.

And until next time, America.

New Images for Dave & Deb in the Morning, Z104 Country (KSOP)

Posted by BryCox (Admin)

Dave & Deb from the morning radio show at Utah’s Z104 Country KSOP, came in for some new portraits that they could use for their new billboards and website.

We shot the images on my fashion gray background because it works for so many things. It’s great just as a gray background, but it’s also great for knocking out or creating custom backgrounds later. See the difference between what I created above, and the original image below.

We had a great time joking around at the shoot, and I can see why they are so good at what they do. They are very funny and spontaneous, and very genuine too. They play well off each other, and the constant laughing made the shoot extra fun.

I really liked the black jackets they brought. The jackets made for a real lighting challenge though. I needed to light the jackets with highlights in all the right places to keep them from blocking up, and to create separation and dimension, but at the same time I also had to light their faces just right too. I really liked the end results and like the expressions and feel of the images they picked.

Of course we did some individual images as well that can be used on their website and other things.

Start looking for these images on billboards around the Salt Lake City area, and listen to their show too if you get a chance. And if you need some cool portraits for your business needs, give me a call. 801-728-3317. I know just how to make you look amazing!

Until next time, America.

New Hampshire Shoot

Posted by BryCox (Admin)

I recently got back from speaking on the East Coast in New Hampshire. While teaching, I demonstrated some various techniques on making women look great in photographs. Here are some of the images I created that day.

These images don’t have any finishing touches on them yet, and that’s because I was showing that they should look great right out of the camera. Any final enhancements later should only be slight as the images should be ready to print without them if you did everything correctly.

Some people think that great images come from having a good camera. That’s like saying  good songs are only written on good guitars when the truth is it’s the artist using the camera or guitar. Any good musician can write a great song on any guitar, and any great photographer can create great images on any camera.

Another misnomer is that that great images come from having beautiful models. This is also incorrect. A great photographer understands exactly how to make everyone look better and an average photographer will make even the prettiest person look worse.

I love teaching workshops because I really like helping photographers do better, plus it helps to raise the level of quality in the industry.

 

In New Hampshire, I was teaching how to create great images with any camera, and how to make all women look better using specific lighting and posing.

Here are two portraits of the same pretty girl in the same beautiful location. I shot her two different ways to show that a camera in the right hands will make her look better, and in the wrong hands she will look worse. Look at the two images and see if you can see all the differences.

In the first image, I used custom lighting and posed her specifically in a way that would be more flattering for her and her outfit. I took control of all aspects of the exposure which means her skin tones have great color right out of the camera. I separated her from the background and sculpted her using directional light at particular angles. Everything was set up and shot manually, nothing left to chance or to Auto functions.

Then I did another image of her the way most photographers would, with no specific poses, no control of light, and shooting the camera on Auto.

Notice how flat this second image looks. Her skin tones are green, the light on her face is coming from the sky rather than from any controllable or directional source, her eyes are dark, the background is too light, and the wrong camera angle and lack of posing and lighting make her look thicker. Again, NO woman wants to look thicker or heavier, and fixing it later on the computer isn’t the same as shooting it right.

This is why most photographers shoot so many images – they hope that with the law of averages they’ll get something decent that they can then spend tons of time on the computer fixing and covering with various effects.

This is why you need to hire a really good photographer with credentials – and why photographers need to get continual hands-on training from Master photographers.

So with a change of clothes, I continued to teach and shoot this model, walking around the town, making sure that each pose and lighting set up made her look great.

We ended up at this cool bridge which gave me some cool leading lines.

Well, if you’d like some great portraits, I know just how to make you look great, plus now is the perfect time if you like the fall leaves. Give me a call and book your appointment at 801-728-3317 and lets create something amazing for your wall.

Singer/Songwriter/Actress Katherine Nelson’s Outdoor Shoot

Posted by BryCox (Admin)

I’m so excited about these images and can’t wait for you all to see them! This is an outdoor commercial shoot that I did for Katherine Nelson. You may recognize Katherine as the actress that played Emma in the LDS Church film, “Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration.” That movie plays daily at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, and she was also in the movie “Emma Smith: My Story.”

Katherine is also an accomplished singer/songwriter, winning all sorts of awards for both her solo work as well the work she’s done with various groups like the Nashville Tribute Band and Kenneth Cope.

For this project, she had a specific need and concept, so I chose one of my secret locations that matched what she wanted to create.

I set up all sorts of lighting equipment imaginable to take control of the scene. Lighting this scene was difficult, but it needed to be specific and controlled in order to create images that pop, while still being real and natural. The results are phenomenal! I was especially excited that a storm had gone through earlier, giving us great storm clouds to work with. I love a sky with drama!

Katherine is a fantastic model and a joy to be around. I find her easy to photograph, easy to direct, and she really had great expression. She even did her own styling and created her own clothing, accoutrements and flag for the shoot. It all worked together so well. I flipped out when I initially  saw her and the details of her outfit. It was all so perfect. I especially love her red skirt against the green grass.

We really had a fun time at this shoot. Looking back over it, two of our initial favorites were the image above and below. I love the sun shining through the clouds in the photograph above, and in the image below, the flag blowing against the awesome storm clouds with a little bit of blue peaking through, really makes this sing!

And this next portrait below is one of my all-time favorites from the entire shoot. I love the stance, the directional lighting on Katherine, and the color harmony with the dominant blue sky. The clouds have wispy pink highlights painted by the sun that has now set. This image is at twilight, and has such depth! I actually put this up on my website’s main splash page today, cropped square.

We were having so much fun that even after the sun set completely, I continued to shoot and create in the dark, using all artificial light. However I did it in such a way that it looks like real sunlight. The scene in these next images was actually dark to the eye at the time, but with the right techniques the scene glows and feels like sunset.

Then to end the shoot, I finished up with some close-ups, again with all artificial light because the sun had set at this point. The idea was to create a fake sunset but with the control of darkness, and these images are some of my favorites! (That’s one of my lights as a fake sun in the image below because it’s actually dark outside.)

You really need to see the entire shoot, but there’s not room enough on the blog, so I created a slideshow set to music. Start it up and enjoy.

It seems funny, but anytime I post a shoot like this, I get a lot of emails and phone calls asking where my images were taken. When I suggest that they hire me and I’ll photograph them there, some will admit that they just want to go to the same spot with a cheaper photographer – as if my locations are what yield great results. This is of course untrue.

Being in a great location with the right gear and a beautiful model certainly doesn’t hurt, but the real key to creating great photographs (whether it be outdoors, in sunlight, at twilight, sunset, or even after the sun has gone down) is specific control of lighting. And lighting people specifically and artistically is my unique skill.

I sometimes point to my list of awards and credentials, not to brag, but to show that when you hire ME, you’ll get something completely unique and personal, you’ll get phenomenal photography.

No matter who you are, I will make you look great, real, and natural, and generations from now people will still love your portraits and appreciate your purchase.

Now is a great time to set up your Spring appointment. I’m sure it’s time for a new family portrait, and high school seniors are getting ready to graduate. Give me a call at 801-728-3317 to schedule a time. And feel free to browse my main website at BryCox.com.