CE Photography Instructor: On the job

John Helms, who teaches Basic Organizing and Editing for Digital Photography and the upcoming Creative Flash Photography: Classroom and Hands-On Practice, is a full-time professional working at Ft. Benning. He recently had the opportunity to photograph nine-year-old Kenny Stewart from Dawsonville, Ga., a cancer patient who experienced a day in the life of a Ranger. Here’s a link to the story, followed by a few of John’s photographs:

http://www.army.mil/-news/2009/12/04/31382-cancer-stricken-boy-becomes-honorary-ranger/

 Here’s a link to our website-Check out John’s upcoming classes: http://conted.colstate.edu/

More of John’s work from this story: http://fortbenning.smugmug.com/RTB/2009-12-01-Kenny-Stewart-at/10574588_pitek#734715431_jsUtZ

Good work, John!

Posted by Kenny Gray

  

Student Work: Studio Photography I, Fall 2009

What a great group I had in our fall Studio I class!  In four weeks, eight students learned basic studio lighting techniques using a 4×6′ softbox, hair light, black background,  radio transmitter/receiver and flash meter.  Each photographed seven models and produced some excellent portraits-here are a few:

Antonio, by Demetrius Colson

 

 

                                                                                                                    Weston and Garrett, by Dawn Hall

 

Sophia, by Dean Rogers

 

Jennifer, by Michael Erickson

 

Lynn, by Bill Adams

I will post some work by my Studio II class in the very near future. If you have taken one of my studio classes or one of Richard Dennard’s outdoor portrait or wedding portrait classes, consider an Adobe Photoshop CS4 class I have designed especially for you, starting next Spring: Polishing the Portrait.   Kenny Gray

Creative Exposures

It had been ten years since my last visit to a Creative Exposures meeting. I has just finished a new portfolio of images, Spirits of Bonaventure, inspired by the novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and so when Jim Pogue, a student of mine from the Columbus Museum asked me to be a guest speaker, I accepted, and took along “Spirits”. The club was going strong at that point and the members filled a large meeting room at the Ledger-Enquirer. I understand that over the years, Creative Exposures’ membership dwindled to almost nothing, before a recent arrival of a few new members reinvigorated the group. One of those new members is Alicia Jasper, a recent student of mine at CSU Continuing Ed and an able and conscientious secretary of the group. Alicia sends email announcements, forwards interesting information and generally gets the word out about the club-I was there because of her reminders. There were about a dozen of us last Wednesday night, including my old buddy Jim Pogue, a good mix of amateurs and professionals, and we had a lively discussion followed by a print critique. Creative Exposures meets the 3rd Wednesday of each month at Knology Cable Company, off Moon Rd. If you are interested contact Alicia aliciahf1@aol.com .

Seek out your fellow photographers for friendship and inspiration,
and Keep Shootin’.
Kenny

Family PhotoArchives

On Saturday, February 7, I presented a program for Columbus Regional Healthcare at their Mind, Body and Spirit women’s retreat at CSU’s Cunningham Center. The title of my presentation was Photography, Family and the Creative Life. The core of my talk was the Family section, where I discussed family photographs, the visual archives that illustrate our families’ histories. I challenged the participants to: Become detectives/archaeologists for their families; to find out who has control of the photos (often the oldest surviving female member of a family), make a visual inspection of the oldest and rarest photos and act immediately to save the ones in danger and copy the others for reproduction and distribution to family members.

I challenge each of you to do the same; it will be the most important photographic project you will ever undertake. Please contact me with any questions; look here for samples of my restorations. If you attended my presentation, contact me for $50.00 off your first restoration.

Protect and preserve your family history and

Keep Shootin‘

Kenny

Columbus Ballet: Studio Portraits

Hello, everyone. My studio, in the Rankin Art Center, is a wonderful resource for area photographers. I teach classes there (CSU Continuing Education) and it is available for rent by those qualified to use it. More and more former students and freelancing pros are reserving the studio, and I am impressed with the portraits they produce.

I had the pleasure of photographing all of Columbus Ballet’s Nutcracker dancers, in costume, just before Thanksgiving and thought you might be interested in my lighting diagram. The three-dimensional look of the portraits is largely due to the two skim lights, which are a recent addition to our lighting options in the studio.

See more of my ballet portraits here.

Columbus Ballet here.

Register for studio and other photography classes here.

Support the local arts and Keep Shootin‘,

Kenny

The PhotoShow Live, September 4, CSU EBTC Auditorium

No, this photo doesn’t show the PhotoShow audience erupting into spontaneous applause; only the results of a live photo shoot just before intermission. We rolled the large softbox (from the Rankin Arts Center’s studio) out from stage right and using this one light (White Lightning 600ws Flash) my associate, Nicole, shot me with the audience clapping in the background. Nicole used a slow shutter speed (1/8 sec.) to illuminate the audience using the auditorium’s overhead lighting. The slow shutter also allowed the light from the projector to provide rim lighting on yours truly and blur the clapping hands. We were able to show the results to the audience when they returned from intermission.

My thanks to our enthusiastic audience-approximately 90 photographers attended and we had a great time. All attendees got discount vouchers for upcoming classes. BTW, it appears that every class we are offering this Fall will run! Thanks to all area photographers who support our program.

Keep learning and Keep shootin’,

Kenny

#1 Beginner’s Mistake

Take a look at the three images to the left. The top two represent what you might see when looking through the viewfinder of your digital camera. You will likely see other numbers and icons that tell you the settings you have chosen for your camera. For now pay attention to the two numbers displayed: the number on the far left is your shutter speed, to the right, your aperture. It is the shutter speed that concerns us today. Notice that the shutter speed is one-forth of a second, (represented by 4 or 1/4, depending on your camera manufacturer), much too slow to hand-hold. In the low light of this cathedral, your camera is “telling you” that in order to get a good exposure, you need a slowwww shutter speed, no problem unless you forgot your tripod, but will result in camera shake without one.

The third image shows how your photograph might look. Camera shake is not a focus problem, it is a result of the camera (photographer) moving during a long exposure.

Your camera has a built-in light meter, and the shutter speed and aperture numbers displayed in your viewfinder, and LCD display, is the light reading. Learn to “read” your camera’s display before taking your picture and you will avoid this common mistake.

Keep your eye on your light readings and

Keep Shootin’.
Kenny

A Love Story

The beginning of a relationship necessitates heightened sensitivity and understanding. There will be doubts and misunderstandings. Only patience can lead to mutual trust, developed in small increments. Do not attempt to force or rush this process. There will be times of heady excitement and quiet admiration, with anticipation of pleasures to come. Before long, you will be tempted to engage in tentative and gentle physical explorations. Take it easy. Don’t rush. At these times, you must keep in mind that a lasting relationship is not based on pure physicality no matter how enchanting the object of your desire, but that it will only progress to a long-term commitment if there can be mutual respect. And be clear that there will be weaknesses as well as strengths; it would be unreasonable to expect perfection. Be gentle and tolerant. Intimacy will grow, but it will take time and cannot be rushed. If all goes well, soon you will become more familiar with each other, and handling will forge awkward fumbling and fondling into more satisfying and productive caresses and eventually into a comfortable working partnership.
At this stage you will be ready to accompany your new camera into the world.

Bill Jay, from LensWork, No.76, May-June, 2008
www.lenswork.com

Is Bill Jay talking about photographers and their cameras? The creative process? Love and life?
All of the above?