Back on a professional food photography assignment in Albuquerque, New Mexico for Grubhub this time at Asahi Express. This is a new restaurant that opened up just before Covid-19 shut down, so I was glad to be able to make photos for them to help them jumpstart their business now that restaurants are allowed to be open at 50% capacity. As per Grubhub guidelines I shot with only natural, available light. I used a reflector to add what pop I could to the ambient florescent lighting and the minimal light that was coming through the opaque windows. Fortunately, the menu items themselves held a lot of interest. If you are looking for good bibimbap and want to support a new business in ABQ, check out Asahi Express.
Using shallow depth of field and setting your focus point
Since I started Jason Collin Photography back in 2009, I have taught hundreds of people of all levels 1-on-1 photography lessons. In the course of that teaching I repeated some favorite photography advice. Here is one of them:
“Show me something I cannot see by just standing there.”
Another one is:
“A photographer can make something out of nothing.”
In the example photos in this blog post I had my Sigma 50mm f/1.4 ART lens on my Sony a7 III full frame mirrorless camera. This lens is my favorite lens for making something out of nothing because the large f/1.4 aperture means I can easily create very shallow DoF (depth of field). Making a photo with a very shallow DoF is one of the easiest ways to make something out of nothing.
High resolution jewelry product photography in Albuquerque
I am happy to work with new client, JoAnna, on her growing line of jewelry and wearables. She brought over some creative jewelry for me to make professional product photographs of at the JCP Home Studio in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I offered her a test shoot at no charge giving us a chance to work together to get the final image results of her jewelry just as she wanted. This will allow her for future shoots to just be able to drop off the jewelry as I know what results she wants, as I strive to provide maximum convenience for clients and their busy schedules. This was a fun and challenging shoot from both a physical (see BTS shot) and technical standpoint, and then again in editing. I look forward to the next shoot with JoAnna! Thank you for choosing me as your product photographer! And thank you also to Jessica for assisting on this shoot.
One of my own personal favorite photos of all time that I made involved Christmas lights. These shots are quite different from that one, but one thing remains, I like Christmas lights out of focus better than in focus! Strings of lights make are an excellent opportunity to test out the bokeh quality of a lens, and my new Sigma 50mm f/1.4 ART lens impressed me with roundness of the light circles due to its 9-blade design. I took the lens mounted on to my Sony a7R IV on a stroll around Old Town Albuquerque during the annual tree lighting event, but the tree itself was not interesting to me to photograph. Much more interesting were these hidden shots I found around small stores and down old alleyways. Scroll down for a top photo tip!
I tell my photography students that for something to be a photograph (and not merely a snapshot), you have to show the viewer something that cannot be seen standing there with the naked eye at eye level. There are many ways to accomplish this, one of which is to use a very shallow DoF (depth of field). For the first time, I own a f/1.4 lens, the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 ART lens that I bought to pair with my new Sony a7R IV mirrorless camera just to be able to create shots like the one above. Because the DoF is so shallow, an ordinary tree branch,, helped by the colors of autumn and warm golden light, looks like an alien world. You cannot see that just by standing there and looking at it. Therefore, the photo shows something different that can attract the eye of the viewer.
While attending a pop-up market at WESST, hidden way out back with no one around were these skeletons propped up to be made to look to be driving farm equipment. It was extremely creative and unnerving in a way to see skeletons on benign human objects like a tractor. I had my Sony a7R IV with me of course with the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 ART lens on to get these detailed shots focusing in on the skeletons and their respective rides. The werewolf in the top photo unnerved me the most. Who thinks to make a werewolf skeleton?? Well done to the team that created this Halloween display!
While at the Cottonwood Mall waiting for a pet costume contest, kids in costume started also ambling in for their own contest that would follow the pet one. One kid really stood out as he was in complete makeup to look like the killer clown from IT. He was standing right next to me and it was kind of unnerving, but also amazing as I surely never had this level of costume for Halloween as a kid! I asked if I could make a photo, and got permission to make these quick natural light portraits. Even with all the makeup, the Sony a7R IV’s amazing eye autofocus nailed the shot shooting at f/1.4 no less.
What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid? Let me know in the comments below!
