The Tools of the Trade #1

Losing your tools. 

There is a team building exercise to should how much we rely on our senses. It requires the participants to describe an object to another person with one or more of their ability being restricted. It very clearly shows how much we may rely on visual clues or that we may need things described to us to understand. We take these things for granted until they are taken away from us. Logic dictates that it applies to world of photography and I found that out this year. 

I dropped my iPad and shattered it  earlier in the year. And no, I didn't have Apple care so it would have cost me $300 to repair it (I have been thoroughly chastised already so save the comments!). It was still functional (if you consider looking at everything through a shattered glass functioning) so needless to say, I wasn't going to cough up $300 for something that still worked. I'm not rich yet (my $1,000,000 check keeps getting sent to the wrong address...go figure). Unfortunately, I started getting some dead spots so it was time but by the time I decided to get it fixed, I had all but stopped using it out of frustration. I repaired the tablet this weekend and immediately felt like I had been reunited with an old friend! 

I hadn't realized just how much I used this thing! I respond to emails on it. I type blog post like this on it. I create fliers for promotions. And very importantly, I watch videos on new techniques and gear. And that just on the train ride in! I also use it for client demos, image checking in the field, and a myriad of other apps that make my life easier. It increases my productivity and is a great tool. This is by no means a testimonial for iPads however. There are other tablets out there that are just as good and some that are better. This is a blog about the stuff that helps us do the things that we do and we take them for granted. 

I'll be starting a new series on the tools that I use that are not actual cameras. I think that it's helpful to see the whole picture because photographers don't just pick up a camera and start shooting. There are a lot of tools in the mix that don't ever get talked about. Hope you enjoy. 

On to the next frame...staying in focus. 

July 2013 Newsletter!

Before and After: Maternity and newborn photography

One of the more interesting things that I do in this field is maternity/newborn photography. Many times, I am called to shoot an event with which I am VERY familiar with and that's the case with this kind of photography. I have come to really enjoy working with mothers and then their newborns.

But that wasn't always the case! I was never sure how to pose kids and/or mothers to get the best shot.  However slowly but surely I developed my own style and what became very true was that it was more important to show how happy the parents were in that moment. As a father, I look back at the months leading up to and just after my daughter's birth and if not for pictures, things would be a BLUR! I keep that in mind when shooting these paired shoots. so much happens so quickly that it's important to have pictures that tell the story of the exact emotions of that period. I hope I captured that.

I would like to share a couple of my favorite "Before and After" shoots. Enjoy!

Until the next frame...staying in focus!
Hayden

Shoot what you love: Artist talk.

There is an old saying "Do what you love and you will never work a day in your life". It refers to finding your passion and pursuing it, believing that rewards will will follow.  I believe that the same is true for photography. For me, the statement would read "Photograph what you love and the pictures will be amazing!" I submit to you proof of said concept: Gummi!

I was shooting a Sweet 16 party and there was a bowl of gummi bears for the guest. I LOVE GUMMI BEARS so I had to take the shot. I am sure people around me were probably wondering WHY I was taking a picture of gummi bears. But I knew that I would LOVE looking at that big bowl of richly colored treats. I think i was right. What do you think?

Until the next frame...staying in focus.
www.GreeneLightPhoto.com

Artist Talk: Cloud City

 Hey everyone,

Happy New Year! This year we will be much more active on this blog. I have been posting a lot of things on the Facebook page but the blog has been getting neglected.So a lot of the same content will be in both places and I will start sharing my tips and tricks. I hope that I don't sound TOO amateurish!

The first thing that I want to share is the latest installment from the series of photos from the Met Summer outdoor exhibits. Two years ago it was Bambu and last year it was Cloud City.  I find the rooftop displays very image worthy! Cloud City was a series of mirrored, multi-sided orbs in the form of a cloud. The sculpture itself was magnificent and I took the image below and then decided to render it as a quad. It's now hanging in my dining room. The image was run through four different filters in Color EFX Pro 3 and generated these four versions.

 This next image was taken while looking at the city next to one of the mirrors. The view from the roof of the Met is spectacular to begin with but it was amazing to see that scenery reflected in the 'cloud'. The image below extends the skyline and the dramatic sky punches up the picture. I waited for a long while for people to completely clear out of the picture and then i realized that the people actually gave it a sense of scale. So I waited for someone interesting to come by and snapped the pic. What's interesting is that the forward subject is actually NOT looking at the sculpture! It's hard to compete with that view!

This next picture is one of my favorites! I like split images and color separation. Typically what people do is take an image and duplicate it in Photoshop then reverse it. After that they line them up next to each other. As I walked out onto the roof, I immediately saw this image in my head. I crouched way down near the sculpture and got this image that looks like it's Photoshopped. In post I desaturated the bottom half and punched up the vibrance on the top half. I mounted it in a gold frame and it really popped. Love this image!

Hope this gives you a peek into what makes me take certain pictures.
Until the next frame...stay in focus!
Hayden.

The same BUT different!

No two people are alike.

We have all heard that statement. It also applies to snowflakes and fingerprints. However, it also applies to weddings! This wedding season (yes, there is a wedding season!) I have had the pleasure of shooting some truly different types of weddings and it's been quite interesting. I have already written about the Brown Wedding and how that came together. Each event brings a new and fascinating aspect to experience and varied point of view. As the photographer, my goal is to be omnipresence and to be unobtrusive as possible. As you can image, those two beliefs don't always mesh with each other. I am always proud when I see pictures from the guests of the wedding and I am in NONE of them! I know I was there and I took a picture of the same thing that the guest did but I managed to not be PART of the proceedings. It involves a certain amount of stealth.

That said, it is almost impossible to not be involved in what's happening. The words of the officiant will move you whether you are single or married. If you are of that faith, you find yourself mouthing the words of the ceremony, right along with the cleric! The joy of the couple is infectious and you would have to be a stone wall to not smile when the bride comes marching down that aisle. On top of all of that, sometimes you get to capture images of the most spectacular and beautiful settings. The last wedding was a good example of this. The couple got married in one of the most simple yet ornate church's that I have been to. R and J were married in an Anglican church in Brooklyn NY and you could imagine stepping out from the doors onto the English countryside. It was gorgeous and the couple took full advantage of the beauty of the space. So did I.

If you have ever attended an Anglican or Catholic wedding, you know that there is a mass included. Translation: the ceremony is long! I guess that's the trade off: Protestant and evangelical churches have long services on Sundays but short weddings and Eucharistic churches have short services on Sundays and very long weddings! But the length of the wedding allowed me to fully shoot the church, the wedding party, the guests, and all the little details that I would have had to rush with a shorter event. R and J were a regal couple and emanated a love that with carry them forward and that, coupled with a great setting, made for excellent images (or at least, I think so).

My hope is to one day be the photographer for an Indian or a Greek  Orthodox weddings! Those are spectacular visually!

I wish them well and pray that their relationship will always be housed in beauty in the same fashion that their wedding was housed in a beautiful house of God.

Staying in focus...on to the next frame.

Greene Light Photography would like to thank the Pearsons for permission to images and descriptions from their wedding for this blog.

When Life Gives You Lemons

As I mentioned in my last post (Bridezillas), brides tend not to be event planners. As a result, when things go wrong (and they always do), they get frustrated and often ruin their day. Recently I had the pleasure of shooting at a wedding where something went very wrong and the bride and groom took it on the chin and made the best of it. The result? Some really iconic pictures that truly captured their spirit.

S (bride) and R (groom) are both teachers so when they planned their wedding, they wanted lots of details that conveyed that. The centerpieces were apples

 and the table numbers were on mini chalkboards.

Their wedding program was a in the style of a composition notebook. To top it all off, instead of a limo to take them from the ceremony to the reception, they chartered a traditional yellow school bus!

It was a perfect compliment to the theme....

Until it broke down on Atlantic Avenue!

We hadn't gone more than 10 minutes away and were nowhere near where we were planning to take pictures and there we were. Stuck on the busiest street in Brooklyn in a hot, broken down school bus. And that was the tipping point. S could have started to fume and complain and completely destroy her day OR she could roll with the punches and make the best of the situation.  She chose the latter. It was her BEST decision of the day!

There is an old saying that when man plans, God laughs. It speaks to the fact that there is already a plan set out for you regardless of what you think you're going to do.  S realized that the reception hall was actually walking distance away. Furthermore, an iconic Brooklyn building that she had originally wanted to take pictures in front but had gotten scrapped during a logistics meeting, was on the way. It was almost as if she was MEANT to take her wedding photos there. So she summoned up the large wedding party and declared that they were going walk, no...Process down Fulton street to the reception hall!

It was glorious. They stopped traffic to get their group shot.

They walked through a major African market occurring at BAM for Dance Africa like a royal wedding procession. As they turned the corner on the street that the hall was on, a music vendor, blaring music, started to play Lenny William's "I love you". They dropped everything and as Lenny belted out the lyrics "Girl I..I ...I....I....", S and R had their first dance right in the middle of the street!

Magical! All that was left was for the couple to walk down the block to their reception and then they realized that the street had been closed off due to the festival! The were able to walk down the street in grand fashion with S and R in front and their entire party flanking them in celebration!

It couldn't have been planned any better!

I reaffirmed a lot that day. My philosophy has always been based on the two rules:

1.    Don't sweat the small stuff.

2.    It's all small stuff.

It drives my wife crazy but I truly believe that things will work themselves out and the end result may in fact be better than what was originally planned if we just let things unfold. This wedding was a prime example of that and I hope that S and R continue to live their lives like that because, as any married couple will tell you, life sometimes hands you lemons.

Staying in focus....on to the next frame.

Greene Light Photography would like to thank the Browns for giving permission for this blog and the use of their images.

Bridezillas

Brides are not generally event planners. Most women generally have a job that does not involve coordinating a very large special event. Even when it is part of their skill set, it's very different when it's YOUR  event! Why do I bring this up? Well the one thing that is consistent for every event, be it a wedding or a birthday party or a cocktail reception, is that things go wrong. All the time. The things is that event planner, being IN the business, KNOW that things can go wrong. In fact the expect it and either plan for it or are really good at thinking on their feet. Like I mentioned, most brides are NOT wedding planners! They tend to not expect the little (and sometimes HUGE) snafus that can happen at a wedding. And what happens then? Well...they have a whole show dedicated to just that! Bridezillas!!

A lot of people often ask me whether I have encountered any Bridezillas when shooting weddings. My answer is always "not really". Why? Because I understand what makes brides crazy most of the time and work towards alleviating their stress and/or getting the hell out of their way!! Think about it: you have been planning ONE event for around a year, down to the smallest detail, and after all that planning the fondant melts, or the flowers are slightly wilted, or the place serves chicken instead of quail, or the photographer shows up late! It can be maddening! I don't blame these women for being mad! But here is the difference between a regular bride and an event planner: the EP would have known not to have a fondant cover cake out in the heat, would have moved the best of the flowers to the front where most people will see them, would know that people don't REALLY care that you served quail, and would have been in touch with the photogs long ahead of time and ensure he was there on time! I just make sure MY portion of the day doesn't cause her stress and maybe help her to navigate the rest of the things that are causing her anxiety (I shot the cake early because I knew it would melt, I will edit the flowers in post and they'll look perfect, I will take a glamor shot of the food that will make people THINK it's quail, and you can count on me being there an hour EARLY!). Being an event planner myself helps me to calm my brides because I need a calm, happy woman for the best pictures!

Speaking of a wedding where something went wrong, my next blog is about a wedding that had a major snafu and how the couple turned it into a great, memorable day that resulted in some of the best wedding pictures for them! Stay tuned.

Staying in focus...on to the next frame!

do overs...

Every kid has played a game in their life (at least I hope they have) and messed up in some fashion. A misstep in double dutch, a bad swing in baseball, a slip in pitty pat. And just when you think it's over and it is the turn of the NEXT person, you hear the ubiquitous battle cry of the playground...
"DO OVER!!!"
Cue argument and pleading!

The fact of the matter is we all live with something that we would love to do over. These are not necessarily regrets but things that we'd love to again. Life gives us a different perspective to the things that we experienced earlier in our days. It can be as simple as watching a movie that you LOVED as a kid (I advise not doing this one...it makes you wonder what the hell you were thinking back then), or going back to favorite place again. For me, it has taken the form of wanting to retake EVERY picture that I took before I started learning more about photography.

I wonder if all photogs go through this? I traveled a lot with my wife when we were not parents. We went to some fun places. For our honeymoon, we went to the most photographed place in the world, Italy! I look at our pictures from that trip and YEARN to return and retake everyone of those shots!!

Recently, I got an opportunity redo a shot that I took years ago. There is this brook in a place called Frost valley that I wanted to photograph. I got a chance to and took the shot ...and it sucked. I learned how to shoot running water and recently purchased the equipment to do it properly. I returned to the same stream, changed my point of view, used proper technique, and VOILA!! I love the shot. Here is the before and after. Next up, back to Italy!!

The "Before" image

The New Image "Frosted Stream"

Daddy daughter dance

I have been a photographer for years but professionally for about 4 years. It has been a great ride and Greene Light Photography is growing. I really enjoy everything that I do and most of all, I enjoy preparing for gallery shows in November...oh yeah, my next show will be in November! LOL Out of all of the types of 'jobs' that I get, I truly enjoy weddings. That is something that you won't hear a LOT of photographers say! Weddings are lucrative but they are A LOT OF WORK! Most photogs don't enjoy it.

One of the moments in every wedding that touches me is the Father/Daughter dance. It's such a special moment and every time we get to that dance, I loose myself in the experience. I have been a father for almost as long as I have been a pro. Each time I see a bride step to the center of the floor to dance with her daddy, I fast forward to a day when i will do the same with MY daughter. I am transported so deep into thought that I OFTEN have to remind myself to take pictures of the ACTUAL dance happening before me!

Interestingly, that results in BETTER photos. I channel all of the emotion that I am feeling at that moment and take shots that I think that reflect that love that a father feels at that time. That's what makes a photographer great! Being able to understand what emotion that photo is supposed to convey and try to capture it. After all, isn't a photo supposed to remind you of how you felt in that moment? When it happens, it's magical! Hopefully, I can keep capturing those images and hopefully, it's for one of you!

Onto the next frame...staying in focus!

Product spotlight! The Lytro camera!

I think this will herald in the new wave of digital photography. Stay tuned!! http://www.devicemag.com/2011/10/20/lytro-digital-camera-rewrites-photography-rules-video/

We're showing off our stuff!

We are hosting our very first photo exhibit!!!!

The exhibit will run from November 4th - 20th at the JujoMukti Tea Lounge, 211 East 4th Street, New York, NY 10009. We will kick off the run with an Opening Night event on November 4th at 7:00pm.

Dozens of photos will be on display (like the ones in the sidebar) and available for purchase. Want to WIN one? Just leave a comment on this post and you'll be entered into a raffle to be drawn at the opening (you must be present to win). While you're at it, join the blog for future updates and giveaways.

Thank you for all of your support and I hope to see you at the exhibit!

Hayden M. Greene
Owner, Greene Light Photography

The Magic of Photography

You come home from a hard day at high school with a ton of homework. The first thing you do is hit the computer (or in my case, the encyclopedia) to do all the research you need to do. By the time you get done, it dark and you missed that game of catch outside or the double Dutch rope has been put away, and now it's time for dinner. Oh well at least all your work is done. The next morning, your friend comes up to you and wants to copy your homework before you go to class. No research, no missed games, nothing. They just want you to do the work and you to give them your results. Sound familiar?

We all went through this in school (unless of course, you WERE the moocher). But old habits die hard because people still do it to me. In the photographer community, there is an environment of sharing that we all appreciate. We all know that today I may share a technique but tomorrow I may learn something for someone who I taught something to the day before. It's like splitting the bill when you're out with friends: in the end it all evens out (PS. That's the topic for a whole other blog). There is another aspect of sharing that bugs me though: the hobbyist wanting to learn a technique without learning the fundamentals. When I started learning about photography, I started from the ground up. I made an effort to understand f-stops, shutter speeds, light meters, everything. That way when I wanted to learn about more complex theories, I had the basics down. Cue the enthusiast who refuses to take their camera off auto and wants me to tell them how to shoot a stitched together panoramic image! Then I start by telling them that they have to set their white balance to manual and their eyes start to glaze over. Now I look like the jerk who won't share my secrets!

I say all of this to say, if you're serious about photography, I will geek out with you for hours and tell you everything I know...once I know you've done the research and know the basics. I'm happy to do that. However, I think it's rude to expect a photographer to detail their work to people who have a pedestrian interest in the art. It's like asking a magician to show you how they did their tricks. Unless you want to be a magician yourself, knowing how it's done just spoils the experience! Same with photography.  So word to all photo enthusiasts who aren't serious about advancing; thank you for appreciating our work but leave the magic to the professionals!

On to the next frame...trying to stay in focus!

Discarded Beauty.

One of the goals of photographers is to capture an amazing image that will stand the test of time. We hope to create a picture that will stand out and draw acclaim for both us and the subject. Another goal is to earn money for your efforts. Often, these two goals require a different 'eye' from the photographer. It is a very hard line to straddle especially for a photographer like myself.

I pride myself in not being a studio photographer. There is nothing wrong with being a studio photographer. Some of the most renowned pieces of photography are the result of studio sessions and for some people, that is the exact environment that works for them. But not me. I love shooting in the elements whether that be a park or in someone's living room. I think that pictures speak more when the background adds to the conversation. They are more artistic that way. I always tell people that if they want they normal white background kind of shot, I'm not the right photographer for them. And there is nothing wrong with that.

So, with that in mind, I assume that people that hire me are looking for that treatment and for more of an artistic, quirky type of picture. Which brings me to the confluence of the two goals. Sometimes, after a shoot, I see a picture that is truly artistic and beautiful that I am SURE that the client will choose. I send them the proofs and get their selections back, only to realize that they have NOT chosen the picture that I thought was amazing! What!?!?! In my mind, I am screaming, "ummmmm ya missed one" but this is their choice. They are paying the bill so they get to decide.

So what do I do with this great image? Put it on my website (with permission, of course) or just put in the archives? If I put it on the site, am I risking not attracting clients? After all, it WAS a rejected image. I then have to decide whether the images on my site are there as stylistic representations of me or advertisements to draw in more clients. I haven't come to a decision on that yet, by the way, and I am leaning towards it being both. If I store the image, I feel like I'm burying my talent.

There is one other option I guess: tell the client that you think that they should choose this image instead. That's a tough call. Clients already have a hard time narrowing down their selections. I recently did a shoot and took 460 frames (that's another story altogether) and I will probably edit and deliver around 100 images. From that pile, the client will choose about TEN!!! Can you imagine after you painstakingly agonize over which 90 to discard that the photographer comes back and says you should reconsider your choices? My head would explode! LOL Clearly, there is no easy answer to this quandary. So I'll keep shooting and hope that my clients and I see eye to eye.

And you thought we just pick up our cameras and start taking pictures! On to the next frame...staying in focus.

That looks reeeeaaaaallllyyy familiar

Every professional photographer has their own niche. Some do portraiture, some do events, others do weddings, and the list goes on. For those of us that do portraiture, and weddings, we bring our own style and innovation to the mix. Every now and again, we hit on a pose that really works for that situation. It becomes our hallmark and gets us noticed. And that's where the problem begins.

Recently, I've started to get a lot of similar jobs. When I first started Greene Light Photography, almost every job that I did was the first or second time that I had done that kind of job. I remember my first wedding/family portraits/concert/newborn shoot clearly. I remember how nervous I was for each of those and, subsequently, how happy I was with the results. That said, I saw room for improvement. So I improved. I read, I downloaded, I upgraded, I sought counsel. Now I know exact WHY some of the poses that I used early on were successful and how to recreate them with other people and get even better results.

But where does that leave my original clients? I wrote a blog about using other people's ideas for your own shoot and how it puts you in a quandary as to how to use the idea without plagiarizing (click here for that blog post). Well where is that line when it's your OWN idea? Are my clients who thought that they got a one of kind photo now upset when they see me use that same technique on another subject? Would they be more upset if they see it done better than their original?

As a photographer, my job is to constantly come up with new and innovative creations for my clients. For the record, I work really hard at not repeating iconic poses and images. However, what am I to do when a client REQUESTS a particular pose because they saw it in all of my advertisements and on my website? It would be crazy for me to say to a customer "I'm sorry. I only did that picture for that client and I promised that I would never recreate it!" That's not logical to me but it very well be what my original client wants me to say. I almost feel that I would lose that original client because they chose me because they WERE going to get a one of a kind type of picture. Or is being the first person ever photographed in that way enough to appease them.

And you just thought we showed up with our cameras and started taking pictures...

Well off to the next frame...staying in focus.

Williams Wedding Guest Photog pictures

I was honored to attend the Williams-Felix wedding as a guest. Here are some images that I captured and I am happy to share.