Let There Be Light

 

Recently, Patrick Luke (Luke Photography) a Fairport, NY portrait photographer finished a two-phase Portrait session with Lesley, who is a pitcher on the Victor girls’ varsity softball team.  Being such a big part of her life, we wanted to make sure we included it as part of her session.  Not wanting run-of-the-mill photographs, we headed out on location her high school to shoot on the turf field that was equipped with stadium lights.  Yeah, I know this was not a softball field, but just go with me on this one.  I wanted to color of the mid-field graphics, her uniform, and the cloudy sky in the background in the frame.  And with the lighting that I was planning on using, all these colors were supposed to create impact and place nicely together.  And play they did.

Softballs and Racing Stripes

 This past weekend, I photographed one of my favorite subjects: a high school senior athlete.
Lesley came to the studio of Fairport Senior Portrait photographer Patrick Luke and brought a multitude of clothes, and we conducted the first part of a 4 hour session with her.  This first session lasted two-and-a-half hours and started in the studio, then stretched into a local parking garage when I heard she wanted to pose with her car, which happened to have a racing stripe that matched her pink prom dress.

Once Lesley changed into her pink prom dress, things really started clicking.  She's also on the school's color guard, and I thought the juxtaposition of her pink dress and her saber looked great together.  Things really took off when she changed into her softball uniform.  She's an excellent pitcher on her school's varsity softball team, and we wanted to make sure that this part of her life was represented well.  I love photographing athletes, making them look like they belong in the pages of Sports Illustrated.

Scamper Over to Something Different

This week I taught an all-day photography class sponsored by the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) as part of their nation-wide Super Monday educational series.  My class was entitled, "The MacGyver Method: Big Budget Photography with Low Budget Equipment".  One woman drove all the way from Massachusetts to Rochester to attend the class and learn how to create really interesting portraits with simple, inexpensive equipment that they may already have.  Hopefully the gas money that she spent getting here will be made up by the not having to purchase any new equipment for awhile.

Part of the thrill I get from teaching and sharing my photographic techniques is watching those "a-ha" moments appear, when the light bulb suddenly flashes above their heads.  My intent is not to teach people how to photograph like me...it's to get them to start thinking of things a little differently, and start the creative juices flowing.  I want them to realize that the most interesting path from A to D may not necessarily be through B and C.

The LukeSphere Light Modifier

The best inspiration comes from desperation and exasperation.  I was exasperated to see that photographers were paying $60 or more to buy a piece of Tupperware from a nationally-known photographer that they could put over their flashes to modify and soften their camera-mounted hot shoe flashes.  I know that real Tupperware cost a lot less than that, and I knew that there was an even better alternative that would do exactly the same thing for a lot less Andrew Jacksons donated from my wallet.

The Lion’s Share of Creativity Comes From….Everywhere

Last weekend, my family and I went to see the touring show of The Lion King.  If you haven’t gone, then you simply have to find a way of getting to this show.  It took all of 5 seconds into the first scene and I was hooked.   Those of you who have seen it will understand…when the giraffes enter the stage…you had me at “Hello”.  We first saw this show four years ago when it came to town, and I couldn’t wait to go back when the show came through this way again.

It’s not only the giraffes and the spectacular costumes and puppets that caught my eye.  The scenery was inspiring.  Looking at anything inspiring should…well, inspire you.  As a photographer and a slave to visual imagery, I find inspiration in all things around me.  Big or small, long or short, high or low.  Artists can and should be inspired by whatever they happen across.  By the way the light strikes a shape, or the way two objects interplay with each other.

Let's Try This Again

After numerous requests, I have put another blog on-line.  The old blog (Blog O'Luke v1.0) got hacked and spammed almost to death, and I made the hard decision to set it free on a farm out in the country.  At least, that's what I told my daughter.  No sense in getting into the gory details.

As before, this version will include postings from recent sessions, musings about photography, and much sharing from my out-of-the box thinking about photographic equipment. 

As many of you know, my peers have anointed me "MacGyver", and I have been speaking to professional photographers all over about getting great results with equipment they already have, or by making inexpensive versions of very expensive equipment...which often prompts the question: "How the &@^#%$ did you think of that?"  MacGyver's Corner will provide photographers with a little insight into the sometimes scary recesses of my brain and provide "how-to" tutorials and share my upcoming speaking engagements.


So, let's strap it on and have some fun.