images

Model Portraits from Teaching at ‘Texas School’ Photographic Workshop – Part 2

Once a year I speak at this big event for photographers called Texas School. It’s at the end of April and photographers from all over the US and abroad fly in to train and learn for an entire week. It’s always one of my favorite events, and part of my teaching style is to give photographers personal challenges using custom lighting while shooting models to see how they do.

And at the end of the week, we have a shootout where photographers from all classes can see quick demos from various instructors. For those demos, I was given a cool Ferrari as a backdrop, and a bunch of models that would come through every few minutes. I photographed the models very quickly shooting about 10-15 photos per model in just a few minutes using some quick lighting techniques.

It’s perfect for showing a crowd of photographers the essentials for shooting a variety of poses, using lighting to sculpt and define faces and bodies, as well as metering, white balance, and getting clients to relax in front of the camera. Behind me, you can see groups of photographers like this, shooting their own photos.

And despite crowds of people moving through my background, here are some of my favorite images I created that evening.

I love the creative challenge of working quickly with various problems to solve – like onlookers, other people walking through the background, the best angles and lighting for a model’s face and body shapes, quick posing, color, exposure, and more.

Here’s me shooting, as a behind-the-scenes image in black & white.

If you’d like some great and creative images, give me a call at 801-728-3317. I’d love to create something for you that you love.

And to see more images created during this event, including in studio, see Part 1.

Finally, if you’re a photographer and would like to attend a full weeklong workshop with me, or would like some online instruction, check out my training website for online videos and upcoming schedule at BryCoxWORKSHOPS.com.

And until next time, America.

Cute Little 2-Year-Old Twins

I had the joy of photographing these cute little 2-year old twins for their birthday portraits. They were so fun and expressive, that they had me laughing the entire time.

Before shooting outside, we started off in the studio on a clean white, to show off their fun, colorful, number-2 shirts. I have things that I do to get little kids to relax and open up with me, giving me great expressions. Right from the beginning, this little boy opened up and saw me as his buddy. But the little girl was a bit more apprehensive. She brought her favorite monkey, and held on to him for the first part of the shoot and started off with some cute scowls.

Before long though, they were both doing great and we got some wonderful smiles from both of them.

One of the games I play is to “get their toes.” In this photo, she’s poking her feet out to show me her toes because she wants me to get them again. It’s a good sign and shows she’s happy, open, and having a good time.

Then a change of clothes and a wonderful, somber expression from both of them. I love these outfits, and love how each one is standing. Their body language is perfect.

But then their moods swapped. She was happy and open, but he started to crash and cry. For comfort, he’s holding a toy car in one hand, and food in the other. And this little girl is calm with her monkey.

And then back to some fun expressions out of both of them again.

But when he started to lose it again, calling his aunt on the phone helped him settle down. And I love her expression, watching her brother.

Sitting down in the chair, she comforts him with an arm around him.

Using these favorites from the studio white, I designed up this 9-up portrait collage, ready for the wall in their home. It’ll be finished and framed, setting these images off.

Then stepping outside into my studio gardens for a change of scenery, we got this wonderful little kiss! They’re each turned perfectly so you can see both of them, neither one covering up the other. And I love their bare feet.

We also did some individual portraits of each of them. Here, she poses against a tree with her head cocked as the wind blows her dress.

And he stands in a nice, squared-off masculine pose, watching what I’m doing, a little worried and ready to be done.

These three images worked really well in this wall trio design.

Little kids grow so fast, and memories seem to be as fleeting as time. I love being able to create wonderful heirloom portraits like these, and I hope their family loves these, and that these adorable children will love them too when their older and can look back on their 2nd birthday together.

I love how these turned out and had a wonderful time with these two beautiful kids.

Summer is leaving us and the window for outdoor portraits is closing. Now is a great time to bring your family or children in for some family portraits. Right here I can do indoor studio and outdoor portraits in the same place, or I can travel to special locations too. Give me a call at 801-728-3317, and let’s create something beautiful for you and your home.

And until next time, America.

Model Portraits from Teaching at ‘Texas School’ Photographic Workshop – Part 1

Once a year I speak at this big event for photographers called Texas School. It’s where photographers from all over the US and abroad fly in to Texas to train and learn for an entire week. It’s always one of my favorite events, and part of my teaching style is to give photographers personal challenges using custom lighting while shooting models to see how they do.

And while I’m teaching and demoing or showing various methods and procedures, I often need to photograph the models myself for a few minutes. Here are some of those images, starting with a portable studio setup and this gal in her red dress. I really like these three images individually, but also think that together they would make a great trio design too. The deep blue background really makes her eyes and dress pop.

This next young lady was a twin, and I did some images of both sisters individually and some together. But here are two of her alone, shooting with a high school senior style.

And here are these two twin sisters together, showing how much they look alike.

We had some fun with this next model, including doing some creative artwork on the backgrounds.

This next lady with the pretty eyes is a professional dancer as you may be able to tell from her natural posing. And she is also the sister of a model I photographed the year before. I thought her dress and colors were very pretty and turned out really nice on this deep blue background.

 

And finally for this model, we walked around the hotel to find locations and backdrops that would be interesting, lighting her with mobile equipment. Putting her against this green vegetation really made her red hair and dress stand out.

And we closed with some of her sitting on the hotel bar, mixing artificial light with room light to both make her stand out while also getting these bar lights to glow.

There’s a lot more I could show from this event, especially images that I shot on the run on location with some cool vehicles. I’ll pull some favorites and post some of them soon. But in the meantime, if you’re a photographer and would like to get more training on lighting and photography, check out my training site where I not only have online training videos, but a schedule where you can come to a live workshop. My training site is BryCoxWORKSHOPS.com.

And until next time, America.

Sneak Peak of Brittney’s Wedding at the Salt Lake Temple & JSMB

Brittney’s wedding at the Salt Lake Temple here in Utah was absolutely gorgeous. She had her reception at the JSMB (Joseph Smith Memorial Building), and those night images are also stunning. You have to see these early sneak peek of some of my favorites that are in her final wedding album design.

As you can see, these two are great together. The day was wonderful and emotional, and with some mobile custom lighting, the images have pop and impact. The colors and tones are deep and vivid, and the images are romantic and look wonderful.

This next image with Brittney’s hair blowing beautifully was our pick for the album cover image.

And I especially love this one of them dancing.

On the evening of the reception, we did some night portraits outside, and here are some of my favorites. 

The final album looks amazing, and I’ll share that entire design soon. But for now I wanted you all to see these. If you’re getting married or know someone who is, send them my information. Or you can give me a call at 801-728-3317. I’d love to create something amazing for you and for your family history.

And until next time, America.

Rebecca’s Bridal Portraits at the Utah State Capitol Building (With Bonus Churros)

This weekend I’m photographing Rebecca’s wedding at the Salt Lake Temple, and we’ll have some of these gorgeous bridal portraits on display at her reception. I love these and am excited to share them with you. We created them at the Utah State Capitol Building on a stormy spring day. Stormy days are especially fun because with the right custom lighting, I can bring out the dramatic skies in the background.

Rebecca is a beautiful and incredibly photogenic bride, and we had so many favorites from this shoot. These are just some of my favorites from the many that we loved.

Her dress and all the details are gorgeous. To show it off, here’s a fun set of dancing images that I think work well as a framed trio.

And here’s another beautiful dancing image, showing off her dress.

I love incorporating details about people into photo shoots. Rebecca is a reader and this is one of her favorite books. Not only does the red in the book highlight her lipstick, but having the book in these photos adds an extra element of interest and personality.

To finish the shoot, she changed into some comfy snow shoes and we got this trio.

When we were all finished and walking back to the car, we passed my friend Scott who had a mobile churro stand there, San Diablo Churros. He was the caterer for a wedding reception outside the Capitol, and invited us over for some of his churros. We could smell them as we were finishing our shoot nearby, and it was a blast to end the shoot with some of his yummy churros.

My photographer friend from Portland, Bryan Welsh can be seen in this image too because he had just flown in to town. He was there because he and I did a a one-day intensive workshop for photographers a couple days later. It was fun having him come along on the bridal shoot with me and I’m glad he made it in this picture too.

If you’re getting married and would love some incredible portraits, like bridals, engagements, wedding day, or any combination of those, give me a call, 801-728-3317. I’d love to create something amazing for you.

And until next time, America.

Creativity and Fashion Shoots in Texas (Part 2)

Here’s some more images I shot while teaching creativity and fashion for a week in Texas at the biggest photography event of it’s kind. I specifically teach photographers how to connect with people to pull out genuine emotion, while at the same time nailing lighting and everything else technical. That way when you start adding complexity (like movement under studio lights), you create some uniquely magical photographs.

And this cute model with the red hair was terrific to demo these principles because she followed directions and moved instinctively well. And her personality worked well under the studio lights so I was able to push the creative bounds and shoot a lot of movement with her. I love all of these with her hair in motion.

And she really jumped well in high heels. At first I wanted her to jump barefooted because I worried about her landing and getting hurt. But she insisted that she could jump in high heels and they make these photographs even better. She had great positioning in the air, and photographers should note that even when jumping, the lighting is still perfect on her face and waist.

My shoot with her was very quick because I wanted other photographers to try what I was teaching. I’d do a quick demo with her then allow everyone else to shoot. But even in our short demo shoots, we created a huge variety of photographs. This set of mid-lengths on blue really show personality and make her eyes pop.

If you’re a high school senior, a model, or otherwise need some creative images that grab attention, give me a call at 801-728-3317. And if you’re a photographer wanting more training in lighting, creativity, or technique, visit my training site at BryCoxWORKSHOPS.com. I have live seminars around the country and lots of online courses as well.

And until next time, America.

Creativity and Fashion Shoots in Texas (Part 1)

I’m excited to share these photographs that I created while teaching my big week-long intensive photographic workshop in Texas. It’s the biggest and best event of its kind where 1000+ photographers from around the world come in to learn in small groups for an entire week with one instructor. As one of those instructors, my class is specifically on creativity, fashion, and adding emotion to an image – while at the same time nailing everything in camera. That means everything is measured and angled perfectly so exposure and color temperature are perfect, and skin, eyes, and body shapes look great before any retouching.

This first set of images in this post is not a Photoshop effect, but rather one exposure with a series of extremely quick flash bursts. This model was wonderful and moved like a dancer so I was able to describe how I wanted her to move during the shot, and she was able to hit her mark over and over. So each photograph is a series of multiple exposures all in one shot.

I love the blending of images showing movement, and how her red hair pops against this beautiful blue background. All my equipment was provided by my friend Melanie and her family at Arlington Camera. They were able to set me up with exactly the equipment I needed to create a full studio at the hotel. And I broke that gear into multiple studio bays to let photographers try the techniques I was showing.

Here is a short iPhone video showing me in action creating these images. This video was shot by my one of my equipment wranglers and helpers, Lisa Crayford. I took the raw footage and added the photos I shot to the end. Notice how I’m locking my body in to be my own tripod during the long exposure, and looking out over the camera to make sure I shoot and catch exactly what I want.

If you need some creative images that grab attention, give me a call at 801-728-3317. And if you’re a photographer wanting more training, visit my training site at BryCoxWORKSHOPS.com.

And until next time, America.

Dr. Collin Ito & the Sonoran Hills Dental Staff Near Phoenix Arizona

When I was recently working in Phoenix, I got my teeth checked out by my dentist and good friend, Dr. Collin Ito of Sonoran Hills Dental, located in the Ahwatukee area. And still no cavities! It was also time to update his commercial and staff photos for his office and website. I’ve photographed him, his family, and his staff for many years, and it was good to see everyone again.

brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_02

Here’s his office staff (above) for his website, and individual head shots of everyone (below) for the office wall. brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_01 His entry and office areas had changed quite a bit since I’d been there last. And my skills in photographing people and interiors have improved too over the years, so it was nice to shoot some new, updated photographs to showcase his place.
brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_06

Even if you don’t know him, I think you can see in these photos how genuine he is, and how great he is to work with. And he’s very skilled at what he does.
brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_03
brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_04A nice touch is that he’s got video monitors and headphones rigged up so you can watch a movie while you’re getting your teeth worked on
brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_08

And he has relaxing areas for waiting and for consultations.
brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_09brycox_cito_sonoranhillsdental_2016_05

If you’re in the Phoenix area and need a great dentist (or if you want to go to the dentist when you happen to be in Phoenix, which is how I do it), Collin is a great guy and a great dentist.

And if you’re looking for some killer commercial photos to showcase your business, give me a call at 801-728-3317. I’d love to help tell the story of your business through some great photographs.

And until next time, America.

Custom Family Painted Portraits and Family Groups for Janet

Spring is officially here and it’s time for family portraits. But sometimes people want something different, unique, something that they can feature in their home as an art piece and be proud of. For those clients, I offer custom painted portraits, painted from the family groups I create during your session.

BryCox_FamilyPaintings-process-GIF-2

I have photographed Janet’s extended family before, but this time they wanted something different. So while they were on vacation in Utah, I drove up the mountains and met up with them and photographed each family in some tall grass near their vacation property. I shot a variety of options with the families looking at the camera, and some of them interacting with each other that I could use to create paintings. Here are some of those finished paintings. They look amazing up close when they’re finished on canvas.

BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_001 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_002 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_003 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_004

And here are some of the other groupings, starting with the biggest extended family group, and then each family separately. I love the diversity of location options in Utah. With a little bit of scouting and some custom lighting, I was able to make this location work right outside their vacation home. By me coming to them, I was able to integrate a location into their images that meant something to them, plus it saved them vacation time so that they could quickly get back to their time together.
BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_005 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_006 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_007

And of course I love to focus in on children and do just some individuals. Rather than show every child’s individual portrait, here are some from just one family. BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_008 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_009 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_010 BryCoxStudio_Janet_Family_Outdoors_Paintings_011

And for every single shoot I do – whether it’s in my studio, outside in my Utah studio gardens, or off on location as this shoot was – I really hope that my clients see the quality and value that I offer. I work to mix into every single image a combination of emotional impact and fantastic lighting. I want both, real expressions that draw you in mixed with all the technical details nailed.

I know it’s time for YOUR updated family portrait. Give me a call and let’s get it scheduled. 801-728-3317

And until next time, America.

Jason’s Acting Portraits

Jason was a great model during his acting shoot. He owns a tech company that he runs during the day, but in his free time, he does acting and needed some cool new photos. This first one was one of my favorites from the shoot.

BryCox_Jason_Acting_1

Being based in Utah, we can easily do a variety of looks, especially right here at the studio. For instance here, we created images inside the studio and outside as well, including this cool one with a motorcycle. BryCox_Jason_Acting_2 BryCox_Jason_Acting_3 BryCox_Jason_Acting_4

These are just some of the many images we created, but I think they show a variety of looks and different sides to his personality, which is something you try to get across in an acting photo.

If you need some cool new photos for your business, give me a call, 801-728-3317.

And until next time, America.

 

Radio Personalities of Radio Station Z104 Country

We had a great time in the studio again during the shoot with the radio personalities of Z104 Country, Dave and Deb, CJ, and Gentleman Jim. And as this first image shows, Dave and Deb are a hoot together. We’ve done a number of shoots together over the years, and this shoot was just as much fun as the ones before. As soon as they arrived at the studio, the laughing started. And we created some really fun images for their billboards, website and other promotional uses.

Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-170

Going through our favorites, this one made us laugh each time we saw it. It was obvious that we’d be using it for either a billboard or some other commercial design. And of course we have a mix of different looks and outfits too.
Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-168Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-117

Great commercial images are always important for businesses, but radio stations especially need impactful and professional images of their DJs.Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-173 Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-191 Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-215 Cox_DaveDeb_Aug2015-269

Some of these are already up on Z104’s website and Facebook page. But if you live in Salt Lake City, keep your eye out for new billboards too. I’m excited to see all the ways they use these photos.

If you’re a business in need of some great commercial images, give me a call at 801-728-3317 and let’s collaborate and talk about your next project.

Until next time, America.

Commercial Portraits of Musician Ryan Shupe

How do you relate the visual story about a musician that plays multiple instruments, is changing up his sound, while matching the album title, We Rode On? Creative commercial portraits that tell a story are some of the most challenging and fun images to create. That’s why I love photographing musicians, they appreciate and want these types of dramatic images, understand the time and work that goes into creating them, and these images get used in print and promotion for some time. They need to be powerful, professional, eye-catching, while telling the story of the musician.

Ryan Shupe has been a long-time friend, and I have done his professional photography for so many years, that it’s crazy to think about all of the shoots we’ve done and all changes that have happened in both the photography and music industries over the years. But Ryan has also helped me push my creative boundaries to continually create new and innovative images that have visual impact and commercial appeal, and this latest photo shoot is for his new album, We Rode On, is no different.

Cox_RShupe-July2015-199c-Edge_VCox_RShupe-July2015-190b-Edge

For more information on Ryan Shupe and his new album, visit his website at RyanShupe.com and If you’re a musician and need some killer photographs that you can use for posters, CDs, media, and web use, give me a call at 801-728-3317.

And until next time, America.