Actor Head Shots on Location | Portrait Photographer Denver

I do enjoy a creative challenge...

So not too long ago I took on the crazy task of shooting over 150 amazing young actors for the Denver School of the Arts' Theatre Department annual head shot project.

They could only be scheduled in the hottest light of the day. In August.

And did I mention that this is a parking lot in the background?

Fortunately for me, these kids are totally amazing and were TONS of fun to photograph, even at a such a quick pace!

Natural Light. 

Expression. 

Connection.

I. Love. This.

Enjoy a few samples from the day!

Painting with Urban Light | Modern in Denver Photo Essay

If you haven't yet seen the Fall Issue of Modern in Denver magazine, I highly recommend you pick it up! (ok yes, if you know me at all you know I always higly recommend this magazine -- it is, in my opinion, the cream of the architectural, editorial AND graphic design crop! Even the ads are beautiful).

I had wonderful time exploring the possibilities of creating surreal images with daytime long exposures for the autumn Photo Essay, and thought I'd share a few of the images here, plus a few "out-takes" from the photographic explorations on which this journey took me. Enjoy!

NOW... if you like this image, I have partnered with Modern in Denver to offer YOU a chance to win a limited edition, signed print!!

Details and all you need to Enter the giveaway are HERE!

Good Luck!!

Shadow Critters | Just for Fun

I photographed this leaf shadow a year or so ago. Reminded me of a Chinese Dragon. Is it just me or can you see it too?

Again this autumn I have gotten lost in the circus of critters that I see in oak leaf shadows early in the morning. They feel like creatures straight out of a dream!

Suddenly, I can't walk under an oak tree and NOT be drawn in by their sinuous, lifelike shapes. I just love them!

Take a moment to look down next time you're wandering beneath an oak tree in autumn -- you might too just get lost in a world of imaginative critter-shadows!

Enjoy!

New Photo Products!! [ Denver Family & Portrait Photographer ]

[ High Quality Archival Prints! In Gorgeous Frames! ]

For too long I resisted jumping on board with the likes of "those" photographers who only sold actual photos and wouldn't release files. I didn't get it. I wanted my clients to have ALL of their photo files to do with as they pleased.

But then...

... then I started visiting clients' homes and realizing I was inadvertently favoring quantity over quality, giving them a inferior product by not overseeing the quality side of my end product. Photos were printed with poor color calibration, on paper that was fading, cropped improperly by automated machines, and looking diminutive on a wall.

Or -- the horror! -- they were sitting lost in a folder of files somewhere. I know you know what I'm talking about...

Bottom line is that I care about my clients too much to have their investment not reach it's potential, and I have too much passion for my work to let sub-par prints or lost files be representative of what I'm putting out into the world.

To that end, I have searched high and low, I have sampled, I have queried, and finally I have sourced an incredible lab (which happens to be based in Denver -- how great is that?) and hand selected a line of extraordinary products on which your photographs will look simply magnificent!

[ 5x7 Image Box ]

So, it's time for your photographs to break out of pixel jail and have a VIBRANT LIFE BEYOND THE DIGITAL FILE!

Speaking of digital files... most of us really only want a digital file so we can share it with friends and family via email, facebook, and other social media. And I'd like you to have that ability as well! So, for every photograph you purchase, you will ALSO receive a web resolution file which is licensed and optimized for you to share electronically!



If you are still on the fence as to why it is worth the investment in real, finished, quality products, here are a few more of the factors that changed my mind:

1) Most of us will enjoy files for a very limited amount of time and then they will become forgotten pixels in a computer file somewhere. Why invest in professional photography at all if it will be lost?
2) Files WILL become corrupt over time.
3) Files will likely be un-readable by future computers / programs (think about how quickly video cassettes became obsolete... then DVDs replaced by BlueRay... etc.)
4) Professional prints are archival, color-calibrated, and guaranteed by your photographer to look the way you want.
5) This is my favorite: Prints on your wall and books on a coffee table, of your family, will be appreciated day after day, year after year, and hopefully generation after generation!

They become HEIRLOOM ARTWORK.

[ 5x5 Press Book with Layflat Pages ]

[ 5x7 Image Boxes ] 

[ Miniature Accordion Books ]

What could be better than a gallery of fine art celebrating the love of your family in your home?

And YES! I am carrying a gorgeous line of frames now, too! 

I am MADLY IN LOVE with all of these incredible products and have samples for you to touch, feel, and see for yourself why the investment in photographing your family can end in something far more satisfying, lasting, and beautiful than digital files!  

Autumn Painting with Light ... in the Woods!

One of my very favorite things to do in autumn is play with daytime long exposure photography, using the foliage to, quite literally, paint an exposure with their palette.

Here are a few of my favorites from a recent road trip to Telluride (for an architectural photography gig which I also can't wait to share).  Enjoy!

Rothko | Denver Art Museum

Museums are wonderful indulgences for the soul, right? And I happen to just love photos of people moving through these spaces, soaking in the color, the vibrance, the cultural history and the art.

So you can imagine what an honor it was to be invited with Modern in Denver magazine to photograph the press preview of the new Rothko exhibit at the Denver Art Museum! It is a rare treat to be able to photograph such an exhibition space with such great art -- I'm sharing these here as my way of saying GO check it out!!

As an Art & Art History major in college, it was a thrill to see these incredibly famous, vibrant and abstract paintings in person. Included in the exhibit are also influences of Rothko's -- totally inspiring treasures in their own right.

If you're curious to learn more before checking out the Rothko works for yourself, see the article in the current issue of Modern in Denver, which includes an in depth look at what it takes to put together an exhibit of this magnitude, including a conversation with curator, Gwen Chanzit (being interviewed above for Rocky Mountain PBS). Cheers!

Welcome to the Planet! { Newborn Photographer Denver }

OMG! So much fun to photograph a wedding... and then get to document that couple's maternity... then their adorable newborn son... and then another maternity session... and now a little girl!! Thrilled to share these photos of a wonderful family as they welcome little sister to the family! Welcome to your world, sweet girl!

Denver Art Museum Curator for Modern in Denver | Portrait Photography

What an honor to have worked with William Logan, editor of Modern in Denver magazine, to create this portrait of Gwen Chanzit, curator at the Denver Art Museum, for a unique and wonderful feature.

In honor of this summer's Rothko exhibit, Modern in Denver put together a story about what it's like behind the scenes creating an installation of this scale.

The model of the exhibition space complete with scale artwork and exhibit text was a blast for the former architect in me to see!

I can't wait to check out the fruits of everyone's efforts -- both in the summer issue AND the Rothko exhibit!

Raw KALE Salad { Denver Culinary Photographer }

OK, please bear with me for an itty bitty side-trip down a culinary road.

This salad is ridiculous. I love LOVE kale, but I honestly never knew you could eat it raw -- RAW -- until a recent visit to Dr. Andrew Weil's True Food restaurant (which just opened up blocks from me). The waitress was kind enough to share their basic recipe, and I've been playing with it for a few days until reaching this recipe tonight, which tasted like perfection.

I'm absolutely addicted.

Thankfully, it's ridiculously easy to make!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 bunch fresh lacinato KALE
• 1-2 lemons (I use the juice of about 1 1/2)
• olive oil (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup)
• fresh turmeric root (about 1/4 tsp)
• parmegianno regianno
• red pepper flakes
• salt & pepper to taste

METHOD:
1. Chop a whole bunch of fresh, washed kale (I used Lacinato - removed stems, rolled leaves and chopped into very thin strips).
2. In a glass (or if you have a better mixing glass for salad dressing, by all means, use that!), combine equal parts the juice of both lemons and olive oil; minced fresh turmeric root; a dash of red pepper flakes; dash of salt & pepper; and grate in about 1/4 cup of the parmesan.
3. Whisk together dressing and toss over kale to coat.
4. Let stand for about an hour at room temperature. The lemon will soften the kale just enough to be absolutely perfect to eat (while also preserving it's nutritional value which would otherwise be diminished if you cooked it).
5. I added some more parmesan, slivered almonds and a croutons for good measure.

Serves 2 as dinner salads, or 4 if you're making as side salad.

Enjoy!

Experimenting with Optics + Light

When you fire a frame with your camera, you are literally painting that exposure with the light of that scene. This concept  has always fascinated me, and from time to time I like to intentionally play with that concept, pushing that light to create luminous paint strokes, if you will.

For an upcoming photo project I am experimenting with slowing down a fixed exposure in order to capture motion as something moves across an otherwise fixed scene. This can be challenging during bright daylight as the camera will quickly overexpose if the shutter is left open for more than a tiny fraction of a second. In order to compensate for that tendency to overexpose, today I have been playing with different kinds of mesh and filters.

A side effect of the mesh is that it creates lovely, ephemeral and soft bokeh patterns, made more subtle when using a wide aperture. (click on photos to enlarge, and note patterns in the background) 

I kind of love it. 

When you zoom in close on these files they start to look like a painter's brush strokes. 

Optics + light... how fun.