Just for Fun No C&C will be given: A journalist among us - me!

I have been made the official press photographer for one of the local small newspapers. I have joined the local business association to further my studio and started taking my camera to some of the events and connecting with people in the community. My photography has now been published numerous times - on front pages with photo credit. Several ad agencies are connecting with me and have indicated that I will start getting work for their campaigns. I can't tell you how excited I am. A few business people have me calling them for Executive Portraits.

A local community organization that promotes music in the community had their annual fundraising event and I was asked to cover it as the official press photographer. There was a hired photographer from the organization for their advertising, but, I did all the press photos.
The event included a dance competition similar to Dancing with The Stars - but were local dignataries who learned dance routines for the evening's entertainment complete with critique from professional dancers. I thought I'd share a couple of them. Taken in a dark, crowded hotel ballroom, with Canon 35 1.4, Iso 1000 Manual at f2.8/ss 200 - I was happy to see the action framed. Shot in RAW and processed in Lightroom with only a bit of crop and curves.

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Congratulations, Kathy, on expanding your work.

It's great to be meeting new folk and good for business if they off you jobs. Keep it up!

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This is a good image for an event. I generally would darken the b.g., but that's my way!

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This image has 2 valuable subjects: the couple and the double set of stairs. If possible, I'd bring out the b.g. or else really make it dim.

Keep up the work!

Asher

Stairs

Asher,

The set of stairs was a curtain/backdrop. Not the feature. Just to give the ballroom some interest other than a blank wall.

Hi Kathy,

I'm glad to hear things are picking up for you, despite the general economic slowdown.
The dance images came out reasonably well, given the difficult conditions. The lighting of the subjects is a bit flat, but I understand the difficulties.

Perhaps an investment in a couple of PocketWizards and an extra flash on a stand would be money well spent if this type of on location shoots happens more frequently. The PWs are also useful in the studio to reduce the risks of people tripping over wires. Of course if it becomes major business, then a good portable studio flash will become a good investment.

Lighting will often make a big difference in image quality, and it allows to repurpose images.

Good luck,
Bart

Go Kathy!

Hi Kathy,

I am delighted to read about this great news. I am sure you will use this opportunity wisely and be very successful. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Cheers,

Bart_van_der_Wolf said:

Hi Kathy,

I'm glad to hear things are picking up for you, despite the general economic slowdown.
The dance images came out reasonably well, given the difficult conditions. The lighting of the subjects is a bit flat, but I understand the difficulties.

Perhaps an investment in a couple of PocketWizards and an extra flash on a stand would be money well spent if this type of on location shoots happens more frequently. The PWs are also useful in the studio to reduce the risks of people tripping over wires. Of course if it becomes major business, then a good portable studio flash will become a good investment.

Lighting will often make a big difference in image quality, and it allows to repurpose images.

Good luck,
Bart

Click to expand...

Hi Bart - Thanks for the suggestion. I do have a few portable setups but for this work it was inappropriate to use it. As a press photographer, it's not acceptable to do a light set up. I had to be mobile all evening. If it were a wedding or other event, then I would have that luxury. The dancers were all doing very fast dancing so there was a lot of stop action with flash onboard using a Stofen Omni onboard.

Cem_Usakligil said:

Hi Kathy,

I am delighted to read about this great news. I am sure you will use this opportunity wisely and be very successful. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Cheers,

Click to expand...

Thanks, Cem. Appreciate your support and love!

capital news kathy. Congrats and good luck for the future.

best.

Kathy Rappaport said:

Hi Bart - Thanks for the suggestion. I do have a few portable setups but for this work it was inappropriate to use it. As a press photographer, it's not acceptable to do a light set up. I had to be mobile all evening. If it were a wedding or other event, then I would have that luxury. The dancers were all doing very fast dancing so there was a lot of stop action with flash onboard using a Stofen Omni onboard.

Click to expand...

Hi Kathy,

I understand the difficulties of such a setting. However, when flash is allowed, it's up to you how that flash is operated (on or off camera).

The problem with a Stofen Omni in such a large place is that the relections from the surrounding walls/ceiling won't contribute any softness to speak of. It does rob you of a significant amount of light when you are at some distance from your subject, and the mostly frontal light will not help to modelate the subjects.

I was rather thinking of mounting/placing a couple of flashes in the room where they are not going to be knocked over, perhaps directed at a wall/ceiling should the distance to the subject allow a meaningfull illumination, otherwise directed at a certain spot in the room. The distance will create a slow fall of with distance, and the lighting angle will allow a more 3D look.

When driven with PocketWizards, everybody is able to move freely, and the exposure is going to be predictable (the new PW models even allow ETTL II on Canons). Exposure could be figured out in advance, even in a simulation, e.g. try a worst case 'outdoors at night' with zero helpful reflections to determine reach, then add the effect of a certain contribution (e.g. 1 stop) due to anticipated refelections.

For a large room you'd still need a higher ISO setting, but you have much more control over how the light models the subject.

Just a suggestion,
Bart

P.S. Here's a site with useful advice. Maybe there is something there that might fit your situation. No need to reinvent the wheel, is there?

Yes

Bart,

Thank you for the link.

If this were an event, like a wedding or some other kind of event where I would be the sole photographer, I might have had that luxury. I have a set of Profoto Monolights ( actually six of these) as well as a Sunpak 622 multi head set up and battery packs - with all kinds of modifiers that I would take to my own booking.

But this was as a newspaper photographer - not an event photographer. As there was another hired photographer and a videographer with a huge stage light, I was quite restricted. As it was I was limited in movement, sat and kneeled on the floor so I would not block the guests who paid $150 to be there and see the dancing and I was lucky to be allowed to have any vantage. I was not allowed to do anything with a light stand, a light on a stick would not have worked at all and I was not allowed an assistant to help me. Adding to that when I got the call to be there, I did not have my usual kit - all I had was a 24-105, a 70-200 4.0 non-is and 5d and one speedlight with a stofen. I actually went to the local camera store, bought the 35 1.4 (which was on the top of my list to buy next) and enough memory cards to shoot a 10 hour event - in case!

These events are very fluid and while we would love to have been able to do more than have on board speed lights, sometimes, that''s all you can do. The editors and event organizers are very happy with these photos which is the best part for me. I will get some more opportunity.

Kathy,

this sounds like big news and a big step forward for your business. Congratulations!

regards
Giorgio

Thank you!

Thank you, Giorgio!

I am quite excited about it!