Travelin' About

Had lunch with a dear photography buddy yesterday and her enthusiasm for my new lifestyle was contagious. "You are doing everything you set out to do!" she beamed, "you are living your dream."  Yes, I am. Shot a wedding last week and have another one coming up. I'm studying Lightroom and HDR every free moment I can find (isn't that what everyone's reading about in local doctor waiting rooms?).  I've got my website www.chriscina.net set up so that you can purchase images there and a profit check will be sent to me (eventually).  I am working with someone to build an even more professional site.  The only thing I haven't mastered is writing the travel stories (complete with photos) and hawking them to publications. But wait... we've got a neat road trip coming up followed by a whole NY wintertime which should be a perfect time for doing just that. Did a portrait shoot for a friend last week and posted it on Facebook – and then got two more...

Got plenty of shooting last week. Participated in a Beauty and Fashion Shoot thanks to Hudson Valley Click .   It was awesome ! There were beauty and hair consultants who prepped the models and we shot onside Wings of Love's studio as well as outside as the evening light was constantly changing. For some reason I felt more comfortable directing young Ronak, an aspiring actor, who happily posed for me.   What do you think of my new watermark/logo, by the way? I'm thinking it may be too obtrusive, but I'm trying to come up with something that defines me.   Saturday I shot a wedding in Connecticut. The day was a #10 - absolutely beautiful, but the sun was right behind the bride and groom as they said "I Do."  A bit of a challenge.  Thankfully it went down behind some tall trees right after the ceremony and allowed me some nice light for some nice portraits. All in all I shot well over 1000 images with both shooting opportunities and it meant a LOT of editi...

Finally feeling like I'm getting adequate shooting time, working time and playing time.  The Greater Southern Dutchess Chamber of Commerce asked me to shoot their "Uncorked Cocktail" extravaganza at Dia:Beacon , a magnificent modern art mecca that has greatly influenced the local art scene exponentially. One is not generally allowed to photograph inside Dia, so this was a rare honor and privilege. It was a real lighting challenge since sun was streaming in but it was such beautiful light, I enjoyed trying to work with it the best I could (constantly changing my settings).  To treat myself to some "fun" time, I took my macro to Andy's outrageous garden. There is a wall of sunflowers over 7 feet tall!   The bees were having a field day with them, so I sat back to watch some pretty cool butterflies. I'm happy shooting. Hope you are, too!

I've been doing a lot of writing lately – not what I PLANNED to do but somehow I accepted a few freelance writing gigs and, bingo, I'm researching and banging away. One interesting article just published at http://www.photoenthusiast.net was on How to Get Freelance Photography Jobs. Everytime I wote a suggestion, I had to follow up and TAKE my own suggestion.  So, it took me a while to write, but I already got a posting from a photographer who enjoyed it and thanked me for my tips! To treat myself to some "me" time, I signed up for a workshop with Robert Rodriguez Jr . that was arranged by Scenic Hudson at it's Long Dock Beacon park.  It was written up as a "Beginners" class so I thought it might help me with this blog, offering some good tips. Everyone who showed up had "big guns" - I guess they were all followers of Rodriguez's work. He did REMIND me of the IMPORTANCE of having my tripod (which I had taken out of my trunk for full mo...

So I'm making some progress at this freelancing stuff.  Did a little consulting at the Poughkeepsie Journal and wrote a story on Electric Windows 2010 , an artistic street festival that is happening next Saturday (7/31) in Beacon where 30 artists will be creating 8 x 12' paintings to be hung in an old blanket factory building for permanent display. (Below is a courtesy photo) I'm also writing an article on Getting Freelance Work for a Photography Forum called Photoenthusiast but, every time I write a suggestion, I am following through and following my own suggestions, so it's taking me a bit of time to complete it. For example, I recommended making a list of e-mail contacts to send a notice to, letting them know you are currently for hire. Got my list together - now to send the e-mail. I did get to shoot this week, too. My son-in-law wrote a play and the music for it based on the myth Persephone. He got an art grant and gathered some very talented folks together a...

"You don't take a photograph.... You make it."                                                            –Ansel Adams This seems truer than ever after taking a full day seminar with Scott Kelby on Lightroom 3 in NYC yesterday.  It was inspiring watching him make blah images pop.  Naturally I downloaded the free trial version today and can't seem to do any of the great things he did yesterday. Perhaps the free trial is missing some of the bells and whistles. The photo above needed only a little cropping as my post production work. I was blessed with a beautiful sunset and I like the silhouette effect I got as I approached the scene. I really like this image, although I remember that sun to be a much more vivid orange. It was a hazy day and I captured that, but the sun seemed to pop right out of the haze and I haven't found ...

7.12.10 Today is my first day of retirement - er, that is the first day of my life as professional photographer. It's kind of a mixed bag - I have so many ideas I want to pursue, yet I kind of feel like I'm on vacation. It's a beautiful, warm, sunny day and I have an agenda - declutter my office, mat and frame beach pictures to sell this weekend at LBI, make a wedding album to show my work, update the website, figure out how to use some new software, practice lighting techniques with some new equipment I purchased recently..... Oh dear, I've got more on my list than I'm going to be able to handle. I gave myself an assignment to start the new career off - photography my brother's family. Now THAT was a challenge! Even with a great deal of help, trying to get 5 people to smile at the same time was quite an effort. There are 3 I like: Even so, the baby, Brynn just doesn't look happy. I may have to do some cloning of heads. I did do a bit better just tr...