Did some family photos for friends in Bastrop, Texas, last year. This was the last location on our list. We were doing just fine until Carmelita the goat trotted into the pic—then we were doing great.
This was lit with an Einstein 640 in a Softlighter II. ISO 125, f/8, 1/160th sec. On a tripod, so I would be able to swap out faces between frames if need be. Manual focus, so I didn’t have to worry about Carmelita throwing off the AF.
Had a great time last month doing some photos for my friend J. Budziszewski in my home studio. I am delighted with how they turned out. They look just like him!
What I mean is that in my opinion, they faithfully communicate the spirit of the person I know—a scholar and a gentleman, with a quick wit and love of good humor.
Don’t look for any of these photos on his next book jacket: that book’s author photo was taken with a cell phone, because I was on vacation in California and the publisher needed a pic ASAP. And in the hierarchy of photographic preference, the cell phone is the logical next choice down from having one’s picture taken by me . . .
The photo on white has been Photoshopped to give it greater contrast and an all-around cooler aesthetic. The one on the black background is essentially SOOC, with the standard Lightroom 3 adjustments. The one thing I used Photoshop for on that photo was to lighten up the black sweater a little bit, without lightening his face as well. Can’t wait for Lightroom 4, since I understand that it will greatly expand the ability to do this kind of localized adjustment. Yes, LR3 lets one do gradient filters, but only on a few parameters. I wanted a lower Blacks level on the sweater than on the face, but LR3 doesn’t let one do a gradient with Blacks . . . so I had to layer two images in Photoshop.
Now head over and buy that book! It’s called On the Meaning of Sex, and is published by ISI Books.