I had an interesting evening tonight exploring the limit of my photographic chops. I was asked to photograph a retirement party in exchange for $$. That changes things significantly in that people have expectations. I scouted out the venue last evening to see what sort of snakepit I was gonna get thrown into. Fortunately the ceiling was white, but it was pretty high, so I couldnt always bounce a flash effectively. Shots of people in the crowd ended up better by available light. I did some posed group shots of the retiree and immediate fambly, both indoors and out. The weather was really nice - a gift considering what the winter has been like, and i was able to use the sunset to backlight folks nicely, while lighting them with a pair of softboxes and two speedlights. Im pretty happy with the group shots, but find that I am a bit self-conscious about walking up to strangers and saying Hey you..How bout you all gather around this whatever and let me take a picture of you having fun. I think i can get over my awkwardness, and I think I will give my customer decent stuff for the $$ I got paid, but Im discovering theres an art in keeping track of who you shoot, when you shoot various people and how to work the flow of the party. Im a bit too self-conscious, and a bit too concerned with my keeper rate. I need to learn to relax, be observant, not be afraid to orchestrate shots, and be willing to fill up memory cards. Its not an easy game - much harder than photographing bugs. Casey points out that i do not need a third job.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 04:38:58 +0000
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