brolly

Business Headshot Photography in St. Petersburg Florida with Eric

in

A black & white headshot on a pure black background revealing only the subject - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/100th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/1 power in 43" brolly to frame rightI met Eric this afternoon in St. Petersburg Florida to make a few different style of headshots for him to help him promote the publication of his first book!  I used my usual strobist setup of two speedlights and brolly & shoot through umbrella light modifiers.  I did not intend with the above headshot to have the background be all black, meaning I did not use the fastest shutter speed and try to control light spill as much as possible to create it while shooting.  Instead I added it using a black & white conversion filter in Color Efex Pro.  Personally, I really like headshots and portraits where the light only reveals some of the subject, making it look like the subject is emerging from the background.

Three-quarter standing business headshot on digital white background St. Petersburg Florida Commercial Photography - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/8 ISO 200 1/100th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/1 power in 43" brolly frame right & SB-600 @ 1/1 power in 43" shoot through umbrella to rear frame leftEric wanted an approximate three-quarters view headshot on a white background.  I had my neutral gray collapsible background setup with a white sheet over it.  The white sheet does not produce a pure white background, Photoshop editing is still required, but it does make cutting the subject out much easier.  For this shot I used more of a backlit setup with the secondary light well behind Eric.  

St. Petersburg Florida Business headshot and standing shot on location with Colby

in

Standing headshot for business client in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame left

There was a little bit of a twist to this business headshot shoot in downtown St. Petersburg Florida yesterday.  The client wanted new images for marketing materials, including an updated group shot of the staff.  The only problem is the staff is spread out over the country and cannot easily get together for another group shot.  So I made the above standing headshot on a white background so that their graphic designer could more easily insert Colby into the existing shot.  The edit you see above is just my own version of it on a digital white background.

Square headshot for business client in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/200th - Strobist: SB-800 in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame leftLikewise for the more standard square headshot above, they already had a specific background color for all the other staff, so I again photographed Colby on a white background so that he could easily be digitally removed onto the existing background the client had for the rest of the staff.  Colby was a great model and basically I got every shot on the first take.

Social Media Portraits with Kevin in Tierre Verde St. Petersburg Florida

in

Social media portrait with a puppy in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/125th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 @1/4th power in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame left

I will be working with new client Kevin on several photography projects.  The first of which was this social media portrait session.  Kevin wanted to have some good portraits of himself showing what he likes to do in his own home setting for social media and also for dating websites.  I have been trying to find a way for years to reach people who use dating websites who are trying to find their dream matches with horrible cell phone mirror photos of themselves.  If you are going to spend money on a dating website, and are serious about finding someone, then I think there is great value in having professional portraits of yourself made showing you having fun and doing things you like to do.  You will definitely stand out from 99% of the other profiles on any dating website just by having high quality and most importantly flattering images of yourself.

That is Kevin's puppy Dash with him above.  I had fun playing with Dash while I was getting my strobist gear setup as she was particularly fond of my light stand bag and tumbling over it!

Formal social media portrait with photos of his children in the background - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/125th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 @1/4th power in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame leftKevin wanted one shot of him looking more formal.  It was his idea to have photographs of his children in the background.  I liked the idea also.  There was a challenge to overcome in not having any reflections from my speedlights in the photo frames on the wall, but after a few adjustments I was able to produce the glare free shot above.

Social media portrait showing pool & billiards hobby - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/125th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 @1/4th power in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame leftThis photograph shows Kevin by his pool table which tells the story of one of his hobbies.  He is still the main subject of the photograph, but including the pool cue and edge of the table shows what Kevin likes to do for fun.

Social media portrait showing in kitchen cooking hobby - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/125th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to frame right & SB-600 @1/4th power in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame leftKevin's house had a great kitchen which I thought should definitely be featured in one of his social media portraits.  This shows him in an inviting activity where a person on a dating website might imagine they would like to visit sometime.  In the right background of the shot is Kevin's new Italian ice machine!  He can make his own sno-cones.  

Next I will be photographing Kevin's GT-R.  I am looking forward to it!

Unique Pet Photography - Kiki sitting upon her chair

in

Kiki fits snugly but somehow comfortably in her own chair in front of the window - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/125th - Strobist: SB-600 @ 1/1 power to frame left in shoot through umbrella and SB-800 @ 1/4 power to frame right in 43" brollyAfter making a headshot for a client in my home photography studio, while I had all the lights setup, I tried to coerce Kiki into letting me make a photograph of her.  She is very, very reluctant to do so for some reason being very resistant to the whole idea.  So this time I put her favorite chair in frotn of a white background (though later digitally edited for a pure white background) and had her curl up into it in her usual manner.  She spends a lot of time lying down like this staring out the sliding glass door beside my work desk.  

She was actually facing into the living room and not out the window, her distant look is just her trying to avoid looking at me and into the lens!

White Background headshot with Casey in St. Petersburg Florida home studio

in

This business headshot for Casey was made right in my St. Petersburg home studio - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/160th - Strobist: SB-800 in brolly to frame right & SB-600 in shoot through umbrella to frame leftThis afternoon Casey visited my home photography studio in St. Petersburg for a headshot.  Her mom came along and was very helpful petting Kiki while the photography was going on.  It was easy to photograph Casey as she was a natural in front of the camera.  After making lighting and posing adjustments as per her request it was just a matter of pushing the shutter, cropping the image, doing a little editing, then adding a digital white background and finished.  Well, I guess it does not sound so simple after all, but anytime I do not have to worry about the client's smile, it seems easier to me!

Allendale Terrace New Homeowner Portrait Real Estate Photography St. Petersburg Florida

in

New homeowner portrait for real estate client in St. Petersburg Florida - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/6.3 ISO 200 1/60th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/2 power in 43" brolly to frame front left & SB-600 @ 1/2 power in 43" shoot through umbrella to frame right rearI normally photograph just homes for sale for Haike of Crown Group Realty, but this time she asked me to photograph some new homeowners in front of their new home in Allendale Terrace.  She wanted to give the couple a housewarming gift and I think it is a great idea for real estate agents to present new homeowners with a professional portrait of them in front of their new home.  

I used a 2-strobe setup, one in a brolly & the other a shoot through umbrella (I keep forgetting to make a photo of the actual setup!).  The brolly was the main light to my left and the shoot through umbrella was behind the couple for backlight.  I framed the couple under the curve of the tree branch behind them and included the house number in the composition.  I also had to be careful to avoid light reflections in the front window which I did by taking a few steps to my right.

Creative Business Headshot in St. Petersburg Florida home studio with Clark

in

A more creative style of business headshot, Mad Men was an influence! - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/7.1 ISO 200 1/160th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to frame rightThis afternoon Clark came to my home studio in St. Petersburg, Florida for a business headshot.  We had been in contact the day before and he sent me a few samples of headshot styles he liked.  He was definitely open to something other than the bright, straight on traditional business headshot.  Actually, the above shot was my favorite from the headshot session and not one of Clark's choices, but I still gave it to him as a free bonus anyway!  For me, I liked the S-curve of his head tilt on down to the slight bend of his tie.  I used selective editing to make the background essentially go black then cropped to create the final look and feel of the image.  This could very well turn out to be one of my five favorite shots of 2013!

Another more dramatically lit style business headshot - Nikon D300 Nikkor 80-200mm @ f/10 ISO 200 1/160th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/4 power in 43" brolly to immediate frame rightAgain, using just one speedlight off camera in order to create more defining shadows in the headshot, the above image cropped tightly purposefully below the top of the head, is a more stylized business headshot.  This is just one of many types possible that I offer both here in my home studio and also possible right in your office or home location.  

It took Clark and I a little longer than usual to create these headshot images, but I was glad to as I am always happy when I can produce new work and when a client is willing to experiment a little along with me.  Thanks Clark!

UPDATE from Clark:

Shortly after getting my professional picture from Jason, I posted the following message in ~50 LinkedIn groups:

I am a LION growing my network while seeking employment in the Tampa Bay area - Connect with me at www.linkedin.com/in/clarkfinnical - While
you’re there check out my profile. :)

In a matter of days my connections have grown from 800 to 1500.  I believe the professional picture that Jason created played a major part in that success. -- Clark