Focusing on families

My new focus is on family portraits, although I'll still take on the occasional wedding or other freelance assignment. To refresh my portfolio, I'm offering a promotional price to at least five families.

When I say "family," I am referring to any individual or group of people (but not too many at one time) who feel like and call themselves a family. And those families must also be:

• Fun
• Willing to be photographed
• Able to follow easy directions
• Flexible
• Smell good*

*Just kidding, although that would be nice

Besides offering traditionally posed and composed images, I am looking for families who are willing to try something new. What that is will depend on you to a degree!

Here's what a family portrait session includes:

• A limited-time, killer promotional fee
• Over-the-phone or e-mail consultation before a session
• Up to two hours of photography time during session
• Traditional photos of you and your family in ugly sweaters**
• Action-packed, fun-filled images of you and your family
• Individual photos of each family member
• One complimentary group print up to 16x20
• Ability to order additional images and gift products via an online gallery of processed images
• Stunning images that will capture the essence of your family at this particular moment in time
• A signed contract that explains your rights and mine (such as using your likeness in my marketing efforts)
• Photos to brag about and show all your friends and other family members

** Or the attire of your choice; we can talk about clothing beforehand.

Contact me today if you are interested, those five slots will go fast: todd@toddovermanphoto.com. We're finally getting cooler weather, which makes for better on-location experiences!

Refocusing

My photography skills were honed with the unexpected and varied assignments a newspaper photojournalist typically comes across. From photographing a group of award-winning students to documenting the scenes of just-happened car wrecks, to shooting a high school softball game to looking for a good angle to see flames shooting out of a house … being ready for everything made me think that I wanted to focus my own photography business on everything.

But that’s not the case.

I have been privileged to be part of some incredible weddings, as a primary photographer, second photographer and also an assistant. I’ve met some great couples to photograph engagement sessions, and have captured teens caught between childhood and adulthood for their senior portraits.

Now that I have a full-time job, one during which I have the chance to take a lot of journalistic-style photographs, it’s time to narrow down what I want to do in my own time. What is that? Family portraits! To me, they are an important record of a family captured at a particular moment in time. Anytime a family is together is important, because that time is so fleeting. When I say “family portraits,” this includes individual shots of each member – especially the children. There is no more incredible way to realize the passage of time than comparing a child NOW to what he or she used to look like in a portrait.

Those portraits can be traditionally posed, or can depict a favorite family activity. Biking in the park? Hiking in the woods? Wakeboarding at a nearby lake? Camping? Shopping? Cooking at home? Whatever it is, my more than 10 years of professional experience – being ready for anything – will help me figure out the best way to capture something special.

My style is pretty straightforward. To me, a technically perfect photo of a person is good enough and I don’t need to embellish it with too much computer work.

So for now, I’m not actively pursuing weddings, engagement sessions, senior portraits, maternity/infants or event coverage. It’s all about family, whichever form that family takes.

Let’s work together on an image that your family will treasure for generations! Contact me at todd@toddovermanphoto.com.

White Rock Lake

I'm hoping to get my kayak into White Rock Lake in the near future. It's a paddler's paradise, not only because of its pretty shoreline but also because powerboats are limited to puny motors on the lake. I love powerboats, but around here, many of their operators have no business being on the water. White Rock offers a more serene setting for those of us who like human-powered craft and enjoying nature without the constant drone of marine engines.

Writer's block

I've been a professional writer for most of my post-college career(nearly 16 years now). There have been times I've been stumped or hesitant to begin a writing project. Honestly, though, I've never had writer's block. If a writer's worst enemy is a blank screen or a clean sheet of paper, then overcoming that enemy is as simple as writing something to get the ball rolling. This method has served me well, especially because my entire career has made use of a computer of some kind. More important, the mindset behind that method is that, no matter the project, you've got to get started before you can begin.

Pictured around me is a mix of personal and work-issued laptops and my grandparents' vintage Underwood typewriter. None of the computers are actually on. There's a flash unit on a light stand coming from the left side of the photo, and another sitting on the keyboard of the big laptop at right. Both were triggered from a unit on the camera, which was mounted to a tripod. Self-portraits can be so complicated sometimes!

A little bit of camera magic

The above image (click to enlarge) is a composite of five separate photographs. It was taken at a school board meeting when I was in quite a bind. Even with my widest lens mounted to the camera (17 mm), there was little chance I was going to capture the entire group. I couldn't back up because there were seats directly behind me. I had no options for securing an elevated position (great for group shots) because this was but one of several groups I was charged to photograph.

So what did I do? I asked the group to hold as still as possible, and then took several photos, turning my camera to focus on a particular part of the group. I tried to keep the camera level from shot to shot so that the perspectives would line up. Once back in the office, I chose what I considered the five best images of each section. In Photoshop CS5, I selected File/Automate/Photomerge and selected the five photos. The software did its best to line everything up, and with a few nudges and fixes from me, the end result is pictured here.

Not perfect by any means, but I was pleased that it turned out so well. Some of their expressions are a little off, but that can't be helped in a large group of subjects this age. This technique is fairly easy to manage and would be highly effective for landscapes with a wide field of view. A few helpful tips:

• Switch your camera's settings to manual mode or aperture value. You want the same aperture throughout so that the focus depth won't change.

• Use a tripod. This will help you keep the frames level in relation to each other.

• Overlap your shots a little to aid the software's merging of the images.

• If you adjust each image before the merge, ensure that you are consistent in those adjustments.

• Try a lot of different things and see what you like best.

• Not just for wide horizontal shots, capture a tall building or other vertical object in the same way (helpful if your tripod can mount your camera sideways for vertical captures).

Meet Ol' Red

I was coming back from an errand the other day and noticed an old red bike at a garage sale on our street. I'd been toying with the idea of getting a more comfortable, purposefully slow bike to just cruise around on. A bike that didn't beg for cushiony shorts, special shoes or gloved hands. The kind of ride that, if I were a coffee drinker, I'd pedal on up to a table on the sidewalk at my favorite neighborhood cafe and sip a mochalattecino while reading the lastest hipster news from a mag that you're not cool enough to know about.

Never fancy, the bike appeared to have suffered mostly from neglect and the overuse of WD-40. There was a bit of rust and grease, some dents and a few blemishes on the paint. I made an offer, and wah-lah ... Ol' Red is mine. Or ours. My better half has already decided she enjoys riding it, too.

After a good scrubbing with car soap and a soppy SOS pad, a chain degreasing and relube with actual bicycle-chain lube, she was lookin' good. I did a quick wax to bring out the shine and help prevent a few of the paint dings from turning into rust. Unbelievably, the bike looks close to new. The sellers called it "an antique," but my guess is it's no more than 25 years old. I might see if the serial number and Google can shed light on that, but it's not important.

The ride is smooth, the steel frame demands taking your time, the white-wall balloon tires absorb the bumps. The fenders collect pebbles and puddles instead of flinging them at the rider. The upright riding position is at the same time more upright and relaxed. The saddle is a bit wide for me (I'm used to a more narrow, firmer perch), but it's OK for now. Would love to find a vintage chrome headlight and taillight to complete the retro-looking aesthetic. Maybe a few other fun touches (a cool sticker to disguise Red's Huffy lineage, chrome rack, etc.). This past weekend we already got our money's worth out of the bike, so spending a little more won't hurt too badly.

The moral to the story? Don't let a little rust or dust deter you from a good time. A bonus: this heavy beast is gonna help whip us into better shape!

Up, up and away!

I covered an event this morning on the 42nd floor of the CityPlace Tower in Dallas. These were shot through a window, showing most of the Dallas skyline and 75 (Central Expressway) when it's not chock full of traffic. The elevator moved so quickly, and the height was so significant, that my ears popped on the way up and down. Crazy!