On The Road

There’s something about being on the open road that makes it feel like home. The humming of the tires, the sun and moon kissing the earth, scenery passing by; a complimenting playlist and off you go into a moment of exploration that has a way of putting you at ease allowing those subtle voices to be heard and manifest into a more prominent vision. A relaxing, mind altering, insightful, meditative experience.

Here are some photos from a short weekend trip my girlfriend and I took to South Lake Tahoe. These photos were taken while on the road to and from our destination.

Here we go

It’s been a little under a year since I’ve had a camera and probably a little over since I’ve shot any portraits. Thank god for YouTube and Phlearn for giving me tutorials to watch during this tragic break. Although, you’d think I was a little better with editing; I guess hands on training would have been good too. Oh, and understanding colors better, but hey, I’m workin’ on it! Nonetheless, camera is here, practice portrait sessions are in progress, and I’m continuing up that hill to reach my photography goals damnit!

The first thing I wanted to get a handle on was lighting and Photoshop. Being able to shoot in bright sun, learning how to use an off camera flash, setting up studio lighting, knowing how to edit in Photoshop, etc, etc… After watching many different tutorials on all of these, the time had come to play around with my own toys and put what I’ve learned into practice.

A few years ago, my cousin gave me a reflector & backdrop holder, set of reflectors, a shoe mount, and umbrella he wasn’t using. Then for christmas I got a tripod and a speedlite 430exII of all which I still have around thus beginning the set-up for an unexpected photo session. What was supposed to be a few shots to practice editing with in Photoshop became 100 shots of playing around with the lighting in my room, then in the living room, with a chair, without a chair, a different jacket, and maybe a hat? There might have been some action shots in there too, but you can’t prove it!

After the mini shoot was over and the images were transferred to the computer, it was time to dive in to Photoshop.

This was my first time understanding how to use layers, mainly adjustment layers, and applying changes to a specific area in the photo on a portrait (I’ve only practiced on a photo of clouds, which do show faces, but it’s not the same.) There was even a little painting going on. Texturing needs work, but that wasn’t my focus this time around. There will be plenty of other times to continue building upon the skill set. In the meantime, here’s what I got.