Category: Michael’s Blog

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Need light? Speedlite! Workshop

I am always looking for new ways to use my equipment. I started out my business using small flashes called speedlites, and I eventually started to move away from them in favor of more powerful studio strobes. However, studio strobes somewhat limit me to shooting indoors unless you bring along a generator or VERY long extension cords to my location shooting.

So to get what I want in a small package that I can easily carry, I have been going back to my roots and relearning the joys of using my speedlites. I went to the “Need Light? SpeedLite!” workshop last Saturday in Irvine given by two excellent commercial photographers, Bob Davis & Stephen Eastwood. Bob is a high end wedding photographer based out of Chicago and Stephen specializes in commercial and fashion photography in New York City.

Need Light

I’ve been using mostly natural light for my outdoor shoots but my photos just didn’t have that “pop” I wanted, especially the eyes. After watching some excellent webinars by Joe Brady from MacGroup and attending Bob & Stephen’s workshop, as well as Syl Arena’s excellent workshop last year, I am back to getting these small lighting wonders out on a regular basis. Don’t get me wrong, I love my studio stobes, but my speedlites have given me the creative freedom to go wherever I want and get the creative vision I need.

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Renaissance Pleasure Faire 2014

From hippie to hip! …This is not your grandfather’s Renaissance Faire!
In the middle of Los Angeles County, there is a place where jousting knights, saucy wenches, regal ladies and the court of a beautiful and gracious queen mix with today’s hipsters, history buffs, fantasy lovers and families. The Renaissance Pleasure Faire is in its 52nd season at the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area in Irwindale, CA. I had a good time stopping all manner of people dressed in fantastic garb who willingly posed for their photos. The Faire was complete with 16th Century games, rides, arts, crafts, food, music and dance, while recreating the celebratory spring day in the late 1500s when the world arrived to entertain Queen Elizabeth in the English Seaport of Deptford.

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Kupo Dream Studio Giveaway

April 1st. April fool’s day. Just another day of people pulling your leg.

Well, on that fateful morning I woke up,  got dressed, and started to read my email. One in particular read:

You won the Dream Studio Giveaway!

Hi Michael,

Congratulations!! You have won the Kupo Dream Studio Giveaway! How awesome is that?!!

OK, who’s punking me on April Fool’s Day? Well, it turns out no one was. I had entered a contest on the Kupo Grip website a couple of months prior and had forgotten about the whole thing until that morning. I cautiously replied to the email and got a response that indeed, this was no joke. And later in the day, a call from the company asking for their permission to use my name in the official Kupo Grip and “The Phoblographer ” blog announcements. I was given a choice of DSLR’s; a Canon 6D with a 24-105L lens or a Nikon D610 with a Nikkor 24-85 lens. Hmm… Well, I’m a Canon guy so that was a no-brainer. So needless to say, I was very excited to add a lot of great new lighting & grip equipment, another Canon DSLR, and too much else to list.

So here’s the official announcements from The Phoblographer & Kupo Grip:

One Massive Kupo Studio Giveaway Ends…

And the Winner of the Dream Studio Giveaway Is…

   
Most of my gear arrived via delivery truck in late April after being shipped air freight from JFK airport to LAX with 500+ pounds of equipment packed onto a pallet, and it is nothing less than stellar, top notch pro gear. I believe I now have enough equipment to open up a store front studio… Well, one can always dream!
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Colton Crossing Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

On a very hot August 28, 2013, Union Pacific Railroad, along with various regional transportation and government agencies celebrated the opening of the new flyover structure over the BNSF Railway tracks in Colton, CA. Thanks to the folks at Arellano Associates, I attended this celebration to record the events of the day. The project was years in the making and will make life much more pleasant for the residents of Colton and surrounding communities. As I have always had an affinity for railroads in general, this was a great opportunity to photograph senior officials from both Union Pacific and BNSF Railways.

Here’s some quick facts about the Colton Crossover:

  • More than 100 trains a day make their way through this important transportation corridor
  • The original Colton Crossing was established 131 years ago per Governor Waterman
  • The project was estimated to cost about $202 million and be completed in 2014. It finished eight months early and came in at less than $100 million.

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Norco National Day of the American Cowboy

HorseTown USA lived up to it’s name again July 27th, on National Day of the American Cowboy in Norco, CA. A lot of pageantry and lots of fun as well. The Ribbon Race was crazy, and the Sled Race had it’s moments as well. The Ranch Sorting Event and Obstacle Course were equally great for the participants.

Here is a Press-Enterprise article highlighting a photo of mine showing the ribbon race from the event: Norco National Day…