This year has certainly been one full of changes. I got a new job, moved out, and spent most of 2018 adjusting to my new environments. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to keep to the strict “1 post every Sunday” rule I had originally set up, but that taught me that perhaps I shouldn’t have such defined terms when it comes to blogging. I love writing. I love photography. I love writing about photography, but in 2019 I’m going to shift my efforts back onto actually taking photographs. I miss all the avant-garde shoots I used to do back in college and even the chill headshot sessions that allowed me to get to know people in a more meaningful way. I’m going to make it a goal to get out of my comfort zone by networking and asking people (who aren’t friends) if they’d be interested in doing collaborations. I think this will really get me back on track in regards to Shekinah Shazaam Photography. In terms of the Chiaroscuro challenge, I basically limited my focus with surprisingly pleasing results. I originally planned on doing portraits as well as miscellaneous subject matter that fulfilled what I picked from Lindsey Adler’s 52 […]
Read More
This month I chose another shot of interesting art to feature. This was a cube sculpture made completely out of crystal. The way the lights shone through it and how it distorted things behind it looked really intriguing. May the light be with you. Follow
Read More
So this month I’ve got to be completely honest and reveal that I didn’t match up an image with a predetermined prompt. I was trying to find something in my archives, but couldn’t. However, I do really enjoy this image and find that it matches with the overall theme I have for this series so that’s why it deserves to be posted. May the light be with you. Follow
Read More
This month’s challenge had me digging in the archives once again (busy summer, what can I say?) This was from the winter when there were ice sculptures all around and bits of the frozen stuff were stuck on a nearby fence. I love the simplicity of this single nail in all that texture. May the light be with you. Follow
Read More
So for this month I basically winged it. I have come to find that I no longer want to pursue the dual portrait/abstract subject matter for this challenge (though that may change when I have more access to models.) Moving forward, I’d like to be less strict with “following the prompts” and have more fun photographing what I see. This was an enamel sculpture I saw while traveling in Minneapolis and I couldn’t resist the beautiful curve of that shadow. May the light be with you. Follow
Read More
Going through the archives again, I found this lighted wonder. It’s so cool to see how light can be captured & reflected on various surfaces. May the light be with you. Follow
Read More
Sometimes our favorite activity becomes less than fun and dwells in the “chore” category. This especially applies to people who do that particular activity for work on a daily basis. I’m not sure about you, but when the days are short and full of more darkness than light, I feel less motivated to actually do my craft. Photography becomes something that I do on occasion when I have to, not a daily task I enjoy. It isn’t always easy getting out of a photo rut, but here are a few tips that might helpfully inspire you if you’re going through it as well. Write about it You don’t necessarily have to blog, but journaling about different issues in your life can help you determine what really is preventing you from shooting. Each time you feel uninspired or bothered by the photographic process, stop for a moment and write down why. Try to be as detailed as possible, it could be a recent interaction or stress is really bogging you down and you’re transferring that negativity onto your photography. Look for inspiration Whether online or in photobooks, try and find something that speaks to you. Sometimes, a great […]
Read More
This month my challenge was to tell a story. A friend of mine, her fiancé, and their dog (who I call Honey Fluff) were able to help me out with this. Ironically, the story turned out to reflect their love for one another, which is so fitting what with Valentine’s Day still on so many people’s minds. We recently had some incredibly nice weather for this time of year, so we decided to take a walk in the park. I didn’t feel the immediate urge to “GET THE SHOT” like I’ve often felt before. I really felt calm and enjoyed catching up with them and realized I’d get the shot eventually, so I didn’t need to stress about it. After about an hour or so, we wound up in a small grove out of the way of other people. I sat them down on a log and Honey Fluff sat in between. It’s always a little difficult when shooting pets, but my friend brought treats along, and we were able to distract her with them to get some great images. This month I didn’t so much learn a technique, but I did gain an even […]
Read More
This month’s challenge was to use two concepts from Lindsay’s book: have your subject in the frame multiple times & shoot through crystal. I wanted to continue along with my Holy series, so with those specific techniques in mind, I knew this was the perfect opportunity to tackle my ‘Trinity” shoot. As the name suggests, I wanted to capture the The Father, The Son, & The Holy Spirit all in frame. Now this could be easily achieved in post by cloning my model two more times, but that would take away the challenge of trying something new. So I brought a few different materials that might give me my desired effect. Here are a few images and what I learned from each iteration. I found that although the crystal did split up his image, it wasn’t exactly what I wanted (I think the crystal was too small.) So I experimented further with other materials like a metal mesh-like candle holder. This gave an awesome texture that framed him, but it wasn’t glass, so he wasn’t multiplied. I tried by having my model move his head while I had a slow shutter speed. Though […]
Read More
