The 12 Peacock

A peacock can spread it's tail feathers and stop traffic dead with admirers. I doubt if there is anyone out there that would disagree that peacocks are one of the most magnificent and majestically beautiful birds on the planet. In the atmosphere of 12, I thought it would be great to start the New Year with something beautiful and majestic. Pulling inspirations from a dear friend and acquaintance, I dedicate this shoot to that friend; Ms Lanna Barrones. After viewing some of Lanna's works and hearing her encouraging words, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with this particular shoot. Now came the fun part; the selection process, I pretty much knew what I wanted to use, but after spending almost an entire morning in the fabric store with Jah; my makeup artist, dealing with color selection, let's just say "we had our moments". It was a hilarious day, as well as a very decisive one, because once we cleared this challenge, we had a very nice view of the big picture. At least for me, what I was seeing in my head (see my hand drawings), made me realize what my finished piece would look like. So let me break this shoot by category:

Wardrobe- would be simple yet colorful. Lanna had done a shoot in an open field which I thought was beautiful. Fall colors using a beautiful natural colored dress with an oversized train. For me, I wanted vivid, and I needed somethat that would make the final shot possible. Having a typical dress, no matter how long the train, just wouldn't work, so after a long discussion with my makeup artist, we headed to the fabric store. Once we arrived, again, Jah, asked me to explain how were we going to do this shot? LOL. I am not sure if she ever really caught on to the concept, but she really got into the whole matching fabrics. So much that I had to take a break and walk away from them because not only were we dealing with the colors we also had a fixed budget for the shoot. Finally we made a decision and surprisingly we were well under budget at the cash register.

Hair-I am very fortunate because I have access to the two most creative hairstylist on the planet. A lot of people might sometimes say this about someone they know, I mean it. A discussion about hair with these two means I only have to mention an general idea, and get out of the way. It is that simple. Ashley requested peacock feathers, and the hunt was on. Wasn't much of a hunt, because I knew exactly who to go see for something as unique as peacock feathers, and I had an ample supply of them, full length and again, still under the project budget. Thank you to the crew at London Couture (http://www.lcvintage.com/), "you ladies and gentlemen really put a new meaning to customer service". All I had to do at this point was sit back and let Ashley do her magic, (Kristy had to sit this one out to recover from a surgery. "We wish you a speedy recovery Kristy".

Makeup- Jah is another very talented part of the team who doesn't have to write anything down ( why am I starting to feel like the only person who have to write things down to remember them?). Jah described the color scheme and if I wondered if she had grasped the concept when we were looking through fabrics, there was no doubt in my mind she knew exactly where this was going when she talked about makeup.

The Model- Serenity had previously done a hair show and watching her walk that show, I said it in my head about her "A Peacock" (well actually female peafowls are referred to as peahens). I simply told her "give me that same attitude you did during the hairshow". We were now ready to go into 2012 with our first shoot.

This shoot consisted of three elements. A location shoot, a beauty shoot, and a fashion shoot.

The location shoot- I used a large softbox. I ordered a 28 inch beauty dish, which I had hoped would deliver before the shoot, but that didn't happen (It did deliver the day after the shoot... you gotta love em right?). Shot at an aperture of f16, shutter speed of 1/125, and an ISO of 200, shot with the 70-200mm f2.8. I really wanted to capture the texture and vivid colors of the feathers, make up, as well as the fabrics, and these settings seemed to do the trick perfectly.

We then went in studio for the beauty shot- used a gridded strobe and a 17 inch beauty dish. I also back lit the background with 2 snooted strobes. I shot the beauty at an aperture of f8, shutter speed of 1/160 and ISO of 200. I used the 85mm f1.4 for this shot.

The fashion shoot- The fashion shoot was shot with the 24-70mm f2.8 at an aperture of f18, shutter speed of 250 and ISO of 200. I used a large octabox, two gridded strobes for side lighting and a hair light and a studio fan to give the fabric a blown look. The fashion photo is a layered process which I knew I wanted to capture so the model was instructed to give me a shot where she tossed the ends of the fabric into the air and another shot where she gripped them as seen in the photo. I then placed the layers on top of one another with the tossed fabric being the back layer on a new layer. I then used the eraser tool in photoshop to expose the tossed fabric area of the bottom layer, and that is how I got the super high fashion look from what was simple toss of a cloth. You can learn the layering tecnique by clicking on this link if you are unfamiliar with how it is done: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DA8TgyTruV8&list=FLZyFxJsZLAIqMJArXUPUmyA&index=87&feature=plpp_video

Raising the Crane

Little Destiny and her big sister Ashley had to have wondered "how in the world did this happen?" A whole hour had passed and they were only on number 11. That means there is only 339 more cranes left to finish.

I believe that 2011 was a very interesting and yet very important year for me as an artist. I also believe that this project is just what I need to prove myself right. Okay, back to the paper cranes. I had never made one, so I YouTubed it and after watching the video 3 times I knew I would be needing help with this. Coincidently my friend Adobe was visiting home for the holidays, so I stopped by to see her. Her sister Ashley and I started talking and I asked her if she knew how to make paper cranes? She said no, but if I could show her plus compensation she'll be more than willing. She wanted my iPhone 4 since I am looking into upgrading. It didn't take little Destiny long to say she wanted to help after hearing how Ashley were to be compensated ( of course Destiny also drove a harder bargain). Nonetheless, the deal was made, Adobe had agreed to manage the project and after an hour of folding sheets of white paper, they had to be wondering if they had bitten off more than they could chew. Adobe asured me that they would focus and complete them before I needed them. 2 days later they have just about hit their target. This is what focus and determination can do for anyone no matter what. So what do I plan to do with 350 white paper cranes? You'll have to stay tuned to my blog and find out in January of 2012. Just know that for 2012 I am raising the bar; well in this case "the crane."

How did I shoot it:

Nikon D700

105 f2.5

ISO: 1000

S/S 1/125th

Aperture: f2.5

Natural light and a bounce reflector. Sharp focus is obviously on the paper cranes positioned on the front row. The rest of the photo is bokeh from shooting with the aperture wide open.

Coffee, Wine and Bumble and Bumble

All week I rambled and tweeted about Bumble and Bumble. Many asked me what it was all about? Well it was all about a hair show for a very good cause. This photo reminds me of the the television show America's Next Top Model . Only none of these ladies are going to fade out of the picture because they were all winners for volunteering to help raise money for the Vine Maple Place (www.vinemapleplace.org), a christian organization that helps homeless families with children build lives of hope, by providing them with transitional housing and support services. This outstanding charity event took place at Ristressos Coffee & Wine located in Maple Valley, and was organized and hosted Stan Parente Salon in Maple Valley(www.stanparente.com).

For me, the show was fun because it again, reunited me with Ms. Ange Smith, the up and coming teenaged fashion photographer whom I had the honors of working with for a high school assignment (see previous blog: Highschool photographer picks up on shooting fashion early). Keep an eye out for more of her work.
I would have liked to post up all the photos to show the transitions between the before and after shots of these models, but then this blog would have be all photos and nothing to read about, and quite frankly, I enjoy writing my blogs. However here is one of the before, during and after processes. These ladies all went through very dramatic hair changes from what I saw as I first greeted them. And these changes made good only get better. Well rumor has it that Stan Parente is preparing for another show that will include his other salons. A bigger show, with even more glitz and glamor that will be nothing short of amazing. Keep an ear open for it. If you missed this one, you'll definitely want to attend the next. Be sure to check out more of the photos via my Facebook fan page www.facebook.com/bluestilling101.

The most disciplined beating you will ever take

I met a very wonderful family. I mean that literally. I was meeting up with a young teenage model and her mom's name just happen to actually be "Wonderful". And trust me when I say this "it is in the gene pool" and so contagious that it rubbed off on dad, who is no easy pushover let me tell you. You see Robert Morrison owns and run a couple of dojos. Some of you might already know what I am talking about, however, for those of you who need that translated a dojo is the place where martial arts is taught. I won't go too much into his story, but I hope this blog encourage local residents to stop by and visit and all others to check out the family business website: http://www.leesmartialarts.org/. I guess it would also be cliche if I said not only a wonderful family but also a very very beautiful family, but they are. At this model meet & greet, I handed the mom one of my business cards because she blended in so well with the beautiful models in the room, and her almost 6 ft, perfect symmetry framed young teenage daughter could have easily passed for an 18 or 19 year old. The dojo happen to be next door to the Stan Parente Salon in Maple Valley, Washington, where I was meeting these models whom I would be shooting for a hairshow being hosted on December 14, 2011 at 6:30-8:30 PM at Ristrettos Coffee & Wine House. 27203 216th Ave SE Suite F, Maple Valley, Washington 98038 by the Salon owner, Stan Parente http://www.stanparente.com/. If you are in the area please do drop in and check out the show, and definitely read my next blog because that is what it will be based on; the show itself. Now back to disciplined beatings :-)

So my new friends, the Morrisons invited me to an Exhibition show that his school was hosting. The show was very spectacular. The kids were unbelievably disciplined and very well trained, and by the time it was over, every spectator had learned that martial arts is more about being discipline and exercise that leads to a healthy lifestyle as a whole than it is about fighting. But as the title of this blog suggest, I am quite sure that should someone as skilled as these young black belts and climbing can assure you, if they ever needed to defend themselves, I am quite sure it will be a very well disciplined beating.

How was it done:

Technically, I wanted to capture a lot of movement and there was somewhat decent light, so I didnt use any flash whatsoever for the event. Criticizing my own work, I perhaps could have captured some of the intense moments with a bit more sharpness, but I got so wrapped up in this show, it was hard to stop watching and change my settings. I already knew in my head that I would do a lot of layering in photoshop to create the distance of travel in the shots and it was my fortunes that the photography gods were on my side because the backdrop curtains were pitch black which made it so much easier for me to layer the photos and remove a lot of the guess work on how to make sure the backgrounds stayed lined up in post edit work. I shot this event using the following settings:

ISO: 800-1000

Shutter Speed: 80-125

Aprature: f2.8-f4

Primary lenses used:

85. f1.4

70-200 f2.8

17-35 f2.8

When the light flash move and keep moving.

When I first started trying to shoot fashion something was wrong. My images got better looking, but they didn't look like the images I saw in the fashion magazines. Those images seemed to come alive, with energy and a life of their own. Even the light seemed to still be flashing as I browsed the magazine. I became absorbed with the fact that people liked my images, but inside, I didn't like them because I knew something was always missing. But this was it. I felt energized and ready. Everything on my checklist had a check near it. This was my first shoot since getting tips from the well known beauty and fashion photographer of the stars; Matthew Jordan-Smith during his 3 day workshop. A ton of information that will last a life time... and model Zipporah W. rocked the hell out it. The lighting tips were on point. As I briefed Zipporah about what was about to take place, I could see the diva swelling up in her eyes, and I knew I had the right model on the set. Thank you Creative Live and Mr Jordan-Smith. But this shoot wasn't about copying a style. It was all about creating my own style and putting my signature to it, so when you hear the click and see the lights flash, just enjoy the views on this blog.

How was it done:

Music selection by the model

earplugs for the photographer
A 1 light setup, using the 86 inch Parabolic umbrella about 4 feet in front of model off camera's left at a height of 6 feet.
Lens: 70-200 f2.8
ISO: 250
Shutter speed: 1/125 sec.
Give it a try and see what kind of results you get. (post edit work included some lightroom adjustments using the old polar setting or the color creative CP2 presets, and I tweaked the sharpness in CS5).
Aperture: f 16
So here is the tip I took away from the seminar: I metered my Key light at f 22 instead of f 16, and I periodically checked with the meter to ensure my light stayed balance. Kudos to Ja of Faces by Ja (abbreviation for Jamyrlyn and pronounced Jah). Our first of many many future collaborations. Be sure to swing by her website and tell her that Bluestill sent you. www.facesbyja.com

Falling out in Ponchos

I have sat and waited patiently for the fall colors to start showing up, so I could shoot some fall apparel. If you are familiar with the cliche "a watched pot never boils" ... well the same thing applies to watching leaves change color. I have booked and scheduled 3 fall shoots but I don't want ot execute them too early or they'll just look like late summer photos. Finally... it happened, I drove down some familiar roads and saw the change. One of my fall shoots i have on schedule is an indoor shoot with a super busy model that I am just dying to work with again. My other model is a teenager still attending school so that one must be carefully planned. But the third one, the one you see in these pictures, sort of just fell in my lap out of sheer coincidence from networking. I met the model, and found her features striking and her name so unique that we definitely decided to use her nickname; Sa (pronounced SAW). This would be Sa's first modeling assignment but she wasn't too nervous, and the conversation flowed. We browsed some magazines to see what was currently trending. We found the look we wanted as far as makeup goes. I whipped out my iPhone, shot a photo and sent it to the Morina, owner of Moxie Glam (www.moxieglam.com www.mmartinezmakeup@yahoo.com). Now that we had an idea what to build the wardrobe around we decided to go and take a look at some wardrobe based on the ideas I had in mind. The first outfit was fitting of a fall look like no other and probably complimented the makeup idea we wanted to use, but something just wasn't quite right with it. And even though it looked great on Sa, it failed to appeal to me for some strange reason which only the photo gods could answer for. looking around, and looking around, we kept adding to the look. Before long it just looked like rush hour traffic, it had become so busy. I need a stylist and I need one right now, is all I could think. Then i saw it!! A plaid ladies poncho with brass buttons. I had just read an article in Glamour about how 70s inspired ponchos are turning out to be the biggest trend of Fall 2011 New York FashionWeek. The look excited me, and I saw my vision. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with Sa.

On the morning of the shoot, I was already being challenged with a downpouring of Good Ol Seattle rain. I decided to switch to an alternate location which would give us a little protection from the rain and afford us to get at least a few useable shots. Phong aka PHD Photography, my 2nd photographer/videographer showed up a lot earlier than I had anticipated and this was good. We discussed the shoot more in detail due to the weather. He was definitely okay with it, and this is one of the things I really appreciate about Phong, because he is really laid back and flows with the ideas. This also gave us an opportunity to discuss a project that Phong will be the lead photographer and videographer on. The makeup was a bit complex so I knew this was going to take a while plus the model had quite a distance to drive to the location and I-5 traffic is never ever forgiving about this sort of thing. Finally she arrived, and we went to the first shoot location, only to find the access chain locked. How could this be?? I had driven out a few times to survey the area and there was never a locked gate across the road. As it turns out, the weekdays are the only time access is permitted. Nonetheless, we proceeded to the 2nd location where we did have coverage from the rain, but this location only gave me decent headshots and I just couldn't envision my full wardrobe here. After enough of the headshots, we drove to the 3rd and final location. Phong began to laugh hard. Because he knows the area a lot better than I did, he informed me that we would need waders to shoot in that area because it was all marsh and wetlands, but clear as day it was there. Luckily enough I had Phong with me on this day because he knew another area close by, which turned out to be a small park surrounded by this very wetland. Since the rain was coming and going I decided to introduce the leopard print umbrella as an accessory. I think it really added a new dimension to the photos and we had fun capturing some great images, and Sa was very happy with what she viewed on the camera while we drove back to where we had left her and Phong's vehicles parked. As I began to drive off the skies opened up and the rain fell really hard. All I could do was think "Wow". Not sure if I was wowed by how hard and constant the rain fell or wowed about the images I was going to be editing tonight.

Equipment used:

Nikon D700

Nikon 85mm f1.4 (manual)

Tamron 70-200 f2.8

ISO 400, S/S 1/60 sec, Aperture f4 and f8 (you can determine which ones was shot open and closed by looking at the bokeh on the background).

Highschool Photographer picks up on shooting fashion early

NOTE: "These photos were not taken by me (except for the one photo of Ms. Ange Smith, the upcoming fashion photographer). These are her photos. Taken because she wanted to learn first hand what it would be like to do what I do everyday."
Reflecting back on my high school days, I remember our school photography class consisting of cameras made of cardboard boxes which you dropped in a mailbox and a few days later you got some dark, grainy horribly exposed photos mailed back to you which you turned in for a grade. The advanced photography class learned how to develop film, and worked on the school paper and yearbook. I never made it to the advanced class and today my business is photography. Ms Ange Smith, a highschool senior with aspirations to become a fashion photographer is suppose to begin a 8 hour session of "shadowing" me and observing how I create my art. But I wanted her to walk away with more than just an insight of being a photographer, so I gave her the best seat in the studio. Instead of shadowing Bluestill, she would become me, and walk away with the experience none of her classmates would have. A full understanding of what it takes to meet a prospective client, arrange a shoot, set it up, direct it, and shoot it. And if that wasn't enough, I decided to videotape the entire episode to give her some real bragging rights and one heck of a resume, because if my client liked the images, they would be used on their website and printed on their brochures and business cards. And young Ms Smith would not find out how much responsibility she was about to take on until she walked in the door to meet me.
I watched her eyes grow as big as saucers and then dinner plates as I explained to her what she was about to endure. "This is no reality TV show. This is real business and real serious business". She seemed a bit wobbly as we approached the client's store, but then she put on her game face and took her charge. The client did not hold back from telling Ms Smith her expectations and that the merchandise she would be shooting was brand newly arrived and she needed the images as soon as possible. Ange took notes every time the client spoke, as she had been instructed to do, and this pleased me. Ange then introduced Phoebe, the model for the shoot which she would be using to the client, and proceeded with wardrobe selection, accessory matching, and fittings. Afterwards, we left the client's store to discuss where and how we would shoot the wardrobe. Satisfied that we were ready, we called it a day. The next morning came quickly as I went down my checklist ensuring that I had everything ready to go. I picked up the model and proceeded to the shoot location, where Ange and her parent arrived only moments later. As we waited on the makeup artist to arrive, I took the opportunity to familiarize Ange with the Nikon D700. we then set up and metered our lighting for two of the three sets where we would be shooting. The third shoot was a possible outdoor shoot, but just in case the weather changed we had planned a third location as a backup. Finally the makeup artist arrived and he whisked the model off to get her ready. Ange took this opportunity to get used to the weight and operation of the camera by shooting photos of the makeup process. Then the moment had arrived and Ange placed the camera settings on the previously recorded settings from when we had metered the lights. Her nerves got the best of her at first, but as she calmed she begin to shoot some pretty impressive shots. Satisfied we moved to the next outfit and the next set, and she did even better shooting this session. As the model changed into the 3rd and final outfit, I checked outside and the weather was looking pretty ugly, so we made a split decision to shoot the alternate location indoor. And a good thing because before we finished it, rain was pouring outdoors. By now, Ange was used to the camera and metering the lights, and she moved around like a pro capturing her visions. Finally it was all over. As we broke down equipment, repacked wardrobe and took accountability for everything. We then sat down and had an after action review of the shoot, and viewed the images. Now it was time to edit. Ange was familiar with photoshop, but it is impossible for me to teach or even expect her to be able to edit these photos to the liking of the client. However, from looking at what she had captured, I knew that the edits would not be difficult because she had captured some amazing photos and taken highschool photography to the next level. I asked Ange a few questions which she replied " I thought the overall experience was a real eye opener. I didn't expect to be so involved with the makeup and wardrobe as I really was" "The first thought about the equipment I used, was really expensive, but I could tell that the more I got used to the camera and its settings that it got easier as the went along" "The biggest lesson I learned was how the equipment came together to make the shot happen. All the lighting and camera angles make a big difference". I then asked Ms Smith if she still wanted to be a fashion photographer, and she replied "yes, more than I did before this experience".
It makes me feel good knowing that this project turned out to be a huge success in inspiring a young girl to follow her dream, and I felt like I was giving back to the community in a really good way. In closing I would like to thank my client and very good friend Julia Jones and her employees at A Little Touch of Magick (www.alittletouchofmagick.com) for allowing a future photographer to experience something she had only thought about but never had the opportunity to achieve until this act of kindness. I would also like to extend a special thanks to Jordna Peflr for the wonderful makeup job you did. The model and the photographer spoke well about your work and your skills.