I’m going away to Colorado for a few days, and I’ve been stressing about what camera gear I’m bringing, and how I’m packing it. Tomorrow, I hope to be sizing up mountains and cool places to take pictures with my fellow photo friend Jamie. (And I will surely make too many “I’m Jamie and this is Jamie” jokes, too.)

So far, I think I’m *gasp* leaving my flashes behind. Why? Well, I don’t have any compact stands and I felt like being as spartan as possible with my gear. Heck, I was considering leaving my digital gear behind entirely, but decided it would be a little too silly. Nearly limitless shots, more lens options, instant feedback and knowing an x-ray won’t likely zap it into nothingness helps.

Despite my extreme preference of 120 film over 35mm, I’ve been on a serious 35mm kick again, so I’m going to try to focus on shooting as much as I can of that. Also, it would have been just a bit more painful to pack my Hasselblad. But it’ll get some serious use when I get back!

I’m flying back to West Texas to see an aunt I haven’t seen in forever, and I’ll be riding back to East Texas with my parents. I expect pictures on this trip, too. And I’m joining a friend’s birthday trip to San Antonio the next day, where I will continue to abuse the shutters on various cameras.

Anyway, I kind of want to post a daily shot and thought, or try some kind of creative way to capture my wandering. So you might want to keep any eye out here and see what I come up with.

Upon my return from all of this, I will have bridals, tons of shooting from my travels and a multitude of other stuff to share. The picture of Heather up top is just a preview!

Click here to see lots more of my phone photography!

Sometimes the best way to get rolling again is to just start. No big splashes, no events. Just pretend you never left.

In that spirit, I hope to have my blog rolling again with a few of these pictures I’ve snapped on my iPhone. They’re with Instagram, which I have largely preferred over Hipstamatic of late. However, I’m beginning to appreciate the brevity of a Hipstamatic exposure over one from Instagram.

Regardless, tools are still secondary to vision.

If I had one major complaint about camera phone photography, it seems that it has to be filtered to death as apology for its simplicity and crudeness. This has really been bugging me a lot lately (and no, my use of filters doesn’t make me a hypocrite, at least in my opinion).

I could actually go on from there to other issues, but I’ll save that for future posts. Until then, hello, and thanks for reading! I’ve evolved a lot since I had time to properly manage this blog, so hopefully I can use that positively and share something beneficial to you.

(Also, I’m still working on a massive portfolio update, so stay tuned for that!)

Before I explain the cool panoramic technique I mentioned in my last post, I thought I’d share some images from the entire engagement shoot with Amanda and Wesley. I’ll just let the photos speak for themselves, though I’ll add that a majority of these worked best when we kept it as simple as possible … even the panoramic shots that involved 15-20 images to make.

Enjoy!

See more here, and expect to see more of them as we work on Save The Date cards, bridals, their wedding and more!

This is an engagement portrait of Wesley and Amanda, rolling around the streets in Tyler, Texas. We had a great time, and hopefully it shows in the photos. There’ll be many more to come!

Camera nerd: This photo is actually a panoramic image. I’ll fill you in on how I did that soon, too!

This photo reminds me of Pete Turner … except I’m not nearly as good. But that’s ok, because very few are!

Check out his ground-breaking color work, and marvel at the year many of these images were taken. Here’s a link, in case you missed it on my links post a few entries back:

http://www.peteturner.com/

Until next time, have fun and create!

*Edit: Setup shots at the end!*
On a lazy weekend, my older brother mentioned wanting – essentially – a portrait with the “ringflash” look. Alas, I don’t own such a device. However, that was not to be the end of it.

One hour later, I’d come out with the above photo, which I believe mimics the look fairly well. That time also includes the time it took to set up, break down and edit the final shot.

I started by deciding to shoot in the kitchen. There was barely enough space to fit my Calumet Travelite 750 on a stand, bouncing off an umbrella; a tripod with my camera, close enough to touch the back of the light; a drum throne for my brother to sit on (and far enough away for me to get a decent focal length for portraits and proper focus); a small flash with a blue gel, facing the wall ; and the black board I held up by hand to serve as the background.

I shot the main light on-axis (lined up with the lens), and used the camera on the tripod to avoid having my shadow in the shot (a trick I learned from Strobist, I believe), and used the gelled flash for backlighting and a little color. I used a black background instead of white to mute things while still retaining a little color. If I had more space, I would have not needed the black board, and could have just let the light fall off on its own.

Since I wanted to avoid putting my shadow in the shot by standing in the way of the light, and because the camera was pressed against the back of the light, I used the self-timer to trigger the shutter. I could have used a remote release, but I didn’t have one on hand. This freed me up to hold the black board in place behind his head.

A happy side effect of the close proximity was that the light bouncing off the black board was just strong enough to make a very gentle rim light, adding separation and depth. (This can especially be seen on his shoulders.)

I believe the on-axis umbrella mimicked the ring flash fairly well, and I saved myself several hundred dollars in the process. I’m not saying it’s a perfect substitution (especially since it’s more inconvenient than having the real deal), but if the general effect is something that’s likely only to be a small part of my repertoire, it’s more than suitable.

Interestingly enough, it’s taken me almost as long to write this entry as it did for me to take this portrait.

Edit: Quickie iPhone 4 setup shots.

There’s barely a month between the world and Eisley‘s third full-length album, “The Valley,” and I’m stoked. The band is about to embark on a tour with Rooney to begin supporting the album, and decided to treat their hometown to a tour warm-up show.

Do I even have to mention how awesome it was? It’s going to sound like I’m paid to say it, but I pretty much have more fun with each of these shows. It’s not just a social thing, either (though it helps that I got to hang out with some truly awesome people), because Eisley killed it.

The show saw the live debut of new album cuts “Better Love” and “Mr. Moon,” which bookended the show in resounding fashion. The band is striking a perfect mix of their old energy and imagination with their need to progress and grow as a band.

Eisley sibling Christie DuPree took the stage with brother Collin to open things up, and were followed by Max Bemis. Christie continues to get better, and Max’s candor makes for a good time.

So instead of rambling on, go over here and check out my Flickr set of photos, and make sure to buy The Valley. It’s GOOD stuff.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theantrider/sets/72157625809671415/detail/

Here are some photographers and others who have inspired me lately:

Mackenzie Ashton – A great photographer (who is also great in photographs) who has continued to capture truly inspiring photographs with her iPhone. She’s really stepped it up even more lately, too. I believe this is one of my favorite photographs, period. I am incredibly envious of Utah for stealing her away from Texas.

And since Mackenzie just reminded of me of this great story that has been gaining steam lately, everyone should check out this developing piece of photography history, about previously unknown street photographer Vivian Maier.

Kate Pulley – She not only takes beautiful photographs, but she also has great taste in other photographers, which she shares on Tumblr. I had the pleasure of meeting Kate and her twin sister Amanda a while back, and they were wonderful people. Kate’s work is earnestly vintage, for lack of any better words at the moment. Innocent and beautiful, yet contemplative and even sometimes melancholy and haunting at the same time.

Danny Roberts – What, this isn’t a photographer? Guess what, you need to be aware beyond photography, too. I absolutely love his style, and would love to be able to draw and paint like this. Notice how several of these posts involve people who also share what inspires them.

F–kyeah United States – Sure, it’s far from perfect, but I do get a bit tired of people going ridiculously overboard when criticizing the United States. You’d think it’s a continent-wide snot pit sometimes … However, this nifty little blog depicts some of the most beautiful locations from across the country.

Yulia Gorodinski – Particularly good. She does a lot of nude self-portraits, so this would count as NSFW, even if it’s still legit art.

Terry Richardson’s Diary – I’m not a particularly huge fan of Terry’s main body of work, but this blog is filled with spectacular images.

Tumblr in general – Many of my previously mentioned people areTumblr folks, but that’s just a fraction of what’s out there. Ignore photographers whining about their images being stolen, too. Most of the time it’s silly. Honestly, how much are these people losing?
Check out louobedlam and partytights.

Pete Turner – Truly ahead of his time. Check the dates on those images, and let your mind be extra-blown.

Todd Owyoung – One half of the amazing flying-concert-shooting Owyoung brothers. Marvelous work, and a great blog filled with good reviews and good advice.

Ryan Brenizer – So good, and filled with advice, innovative ideas and tips.

Strobist – Talk about staying power. Learn about off-camera flash and lighting in general. Other awesomeness includes interviews and on-the-job insights.

Bonus awesomeness: Cul de Sac, a wonderful and charming comic: … here’s an example. And finally, Scarygoround has gotten younger and even more glorious-er, and has become Bad Machinery.

Yeah, there are tons more. Gads. But I’ll let you run with these and enjoy them.

This has been one heck of a good year. When it came to doing my traditional annual “Top 10″ list for the year, I quickly realized I was trouble. And then I thought, “why do I have to limit myself? I have all the space I want!”

So here we go, a marvel of the capacious confines of the Internet: My top 30 photos from 2010.

30. Mansions live
I was kindly invited to photograph a John Nolan show in Waco, Texas back in February. I think one of my best shots from that was probably this one of Mansions. It was actually a close call, as all of these were. This shot is featured on Fender Guitars’ website (http://www.flickr.com/photos/theantrider/4679882057/in/set-72157616960079697/). As shot of mine from John’s set was featured on a live CD from Looney Tunes. (http://www.flickr.com/photos/theantrider/4741031532/in/set-72157616960079697/) What a fun and productive show. Thanks, John and Camille!

29. Church fire
By far the craziest moment of the year. I had just finished snapping a few photos with Jodi in Tyler, Texas, when we came across this inferno. It turns out it was arson, and there were more fires. The suspects are now on trial, last I heard. This resulted in me having a chat with the Texas Rangers (the law enforcement organization) about what happened that night. What a trip.

28. Bridal for Jessica
I don’t have too much to add to this one, except it was a great combination of a very willing bride who was great at working with me, and the very kind assistance of her mother who helped hold my light stand. I love when people have good ideas AND are willing to go the extra mile with me to make them reality. She’s also the sister of the bride in No. 17!!

27. Michael Jackson Tribute
A shot I love from my documentation of the Kilgore College Rangerettes’ annual Revels variety show. This was from a Michael Jackson tribute dance. Pretty sure you can tell which dance this is …

26. Sherri DuPree-Bemis at Brewtones
It is absolutely tough for me to pick out Eisley concert shots, but I believe it’s been a good year for me to photograph Sherri at the shows I’ve been to. I REALLY hope to see them at a big venue in 2011, and I am very much looking forward to their third album, “The Valley.” Trust me, it is SO worth the wait.

25. Hipstamania
I could have chosen many shots I took with this neat little iPhone app, but I like this one because of its graphic design that reaches far beyond processing and what kind of camera it came from. Read about my obsession here!

24. Jamie at the Texan
The photo that shut me up from talking trash about 35mm color film. I know, I know … I should have known better. I am definitely going to use my Nikon F100 a lot more next year. Also, I hope to work with Jamie more then, too.

23. Jodi
This was a fun shoot and a race against darkness. I like how this came out, especially despite the less-than-ideal shooting conditions. I believe we “winged it” pretty well and got something of substance. har har.

22. Melody
Melody has some cool ideas, and it’s a treat to truly collaborate with people. She liked the basic idea of her walking off a curb, and I arranged her with the setting sun to get this shot.

21. Meagan triptych
This is Meagan’s personality captured in three frames, and a good lesson in reaching outside of a comfort zone. I started working on this pretty much as a joke, and it turned into something pretty cool, if you ask me.

20. Warren
Very spontaneous portrait of a classmate in Houston, Texas. I saw him standing in this great light, told him to not move and grabbed my camera.

19. Sherri at Brewtones
Sherri rules. ‘Nuff said.

18. Meagan
I just explained this one in my last post.

17. Jennifer Bridal
Technically, this is not in the correct white balance. But would it be as special if I removed the color cast? I love the warmth and lines, and I think it treats the bride with the proper reverence for the image.

16. Coy Lothrop
I wanted to knock this one out good, clean and fast, and it worked well. I had no clue what I’d be doing when I walked in the door. I took a few minutes to look around and came up with this interpretive business portrait. I didn’t just settle with my first idea, and went the extra mile to add the color in the background.

15. Christian
This was lit entirely by window light … in a men’s bathroom. Yup.

14. Jessica on the playground
What is it with us and merry-go-rounds? I didn’t even remember we’d shot on one before until I got home. ha ha.

13. Dru at Revels
Another shot from Revels. The spread this was on won a national college journalism award. It ran across two pages in a broadsheet newspaper, which is definitely closer to the size it should be viewed at.

12. Lauren in Parking Garage
Among the things I’ve been working on this year is my attention to color. That teamed very well with Lauren’s excellent modeling and sense of style to produce this gem.

11. Hayley
I am so inspired by open land, and this is a result. I also couldn’t pass up this scrapped air conditioner when we ran across it.

10. Jensie on the lake
This is the story of a great model and a wonderful sunset … I need to clean up the amount of text on this image at some point … Watermarks can definitely be annoying, but can also be a necessary evil at times. Regardless, I love the constant range of color and tone displayed by the 120 film.

9. The Pollicks
An award-winning environmental portrait I shot for The Flare. If you look at the wall, you can even see his Kilgore College diploma. How some people don’t consider environmental portraiture to be actual photojournalism baffles me.

8. Moving Castles
Tolerating miserable shooting conditions rewarded us with a great band photo. More often than not, toughing it out and going the extra mile pays off.

7. Self-portrait
This ranks so highly for me because it represents my increasing ability to abstract and find new ground to explore. Another strike against the comfort zone!

6. Stacy with Jeremy Larson
Who would think you could get this kind of picture from what is essentially a very underlit stage? If you seek, ye shall find. The performance was fittingly beautiful, by the way.

5. Cassel porch
The fact that three images on this list come from this one day should be a testament to planning, deep thought and collaboration. Also, Cassel rocks.

4. Alaskan adventurers
I recently posted this one, too. I LOVE editorial work. Willing subjects make things even more enjoyable.

3. Cassel door
I noticed this light pattern and everything else fell into place. Like I’ve said, this was a very good day for photography.

2. Jessica by the fountain
This was pretty much the worst time of day for a photo, but understanding light helped me take one of my all-time favorite images. Please note the value of repeated collaboration with models! Read about it here.

1. Water Dancer
This photo and the previous shot were the stars of my solo exhibition, “Many FACEtS.” I wanted to take more meaningful photos, and I feel like this is a great embodiment of where I want some of my work to head.

Obviously this could have gone so many ways, and I would probably put this list in 10 different orders on 10 different days, but I like every image here. It will also be interesting to see how I view this list in the future. In the meantime, it is exciting to realize I took ALL of these in 2010. I can’t believe I’ve done so much, and I look forward to doing even more in 2011.

THANK YOU all for reading my blog! I will once again try so hard not to have big breaks when I’m so busy, and I will always try to make this blog an enriching and entertaining experience. Have a very safe and happy New Year, and I’ll see y’all next year … in a couple of days.

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(Also worth viewing, and may have wound up on this list on another day: Jensie, Jackie I and II, Jamie I and II, Hayley, Heather, so many Hipstamatic shots I need to post soon, Melody, Katie and some photos I haven’t even been able to find time to post yet!)

* If you want to, check out my lists for 2008 and 2009!

This portrait of my friend Meagan was snapped one night after she took photos with another KC student. I had assisted with the lighting, and definitely had my fill of straightforward “nice” lighting, so I want to try something a little more adventurous.

I started by switching out the usual large soft box on the main light for a grid, which reduced the light to a hard spot light. From there, I can’t quite remember, but I mostly only had fairly dim lighting on the rest of the white, seamless background.

To record the motion, I used a 1/8 shutter speed, which is fast enough to record motion, but not so slow that she disappeared completely or blurred beyond recognition.

So how is her face and tattoo in such great focus? That’s where the grid spot comes in: Because her face was pretty much in darkness, and because she was spinning, the only light that was really recorded for her face was the much-brighter main light, which was heavily restricted by the grid, so it didn’t go mussing up the whole photo like it would have through the soft box. In effect, the gridded light basically recorded a second image that was controlled by the f/stop.

That’s the technical side of all of this, but the main thing about this photo is Meagan and my interpretation of her. She was dressed a bit wildly for her previous shoot, and I didn’t bother having her change. It is very fitting of her to appear out of the ordinary, and her tattoo definitely tells of her personality. What good would “normal” lighting do for her?

It’s all a bit outside of the lines, and less conventional, but there’s a definite beauty, dignity and depth. Perfectly fitting of the subject, if you ask me.