After a lot of hard work, I ended up with a body of work I felt comfortable with. We got those hung in the gallery just in time for the opening last weekend. It was a darn good time. Lots of friends and family showed up, which made for a great night. Thanks to everyone who showed support, either with their physical presence or wishes of good luck.

The work will be displayed in the gallery (Graphite Galleries, 936 Royal Street) through August 20th. That INCLUDES this weekend (August 14), which is Dirty Linen Night, when the Royal Street galleries keep their doors open late. The street will be blocked off and the drinks will be flowing. Everyone will be gettin’ their art on. If you didn’t have a chance to show up last weekend, or if you just want to have a great night, show up to Dirty Linen and pop by the gallery.

See you there!

I had never met her before, but as soon as she walked in I knew this would be an easy job. Great smile, great laugh. We did a few straight portraits and then I conducted my own mini-interview (while shooting) to get her to talk and relax a bit. I’m telling you, getting people to relax is BY FAR the toughest part of portrait work. You have to temporarily forget all the technical info and lighting and realize that almost no one feels comfortable with a camera in their face. Even someone who deals in cameras, people, and PR like Jennifer Day.

Speaking of lighting, let me give a big ole’ thanks to Mother Nature on this one. I started out slinging lights all over the place, umbrellas, beauty dishes, stands, etc. And I just couldn’t get the look I wanted. I was getting a little frustrated and thought, “let’s give some good old-fashioned window light a shot”. Opened the shutters, arranged a drape just so, brought in a reflector and BAM. Heavenly, beautiful, reliable, battery-free window light. Gotta love it. It’s always there for you, waiting, saying, “Mmmhmmm, he’ll come back. Once he realizes all those fancy lights and modifiers can’t do what I do”.

Ahem. On to the pics:

Beyond the three that made the article, I had two extra personal favorites.

This shallow depth-of-field one:

And this one, which shows what a fun personality she has. She’s a riot, I tell you:

Be there.

Because I will be there. Teaching a 8-hour Fundamentals of Photography course. I’m really excited about this one.

This photography bug has been a part of me for so long now. After voraciously devouring everything photography-related I can get my hands on (and yapping about it to anyone unlucky enough to be close to me for more than five minutes), this is my opportunity to spread the love even further. I talk about it every chance I have anyway, so why not do it in a semi-structured classroom environment?

I will be covering all of the fundamentals. How a camera works, the basics of exposure, composition, and light. Photography as science, technical craft, and art. It will be a whirlwind of information and fun. The class is meant for total beginners: people with a new SLR camera (or any camera that is capable of full manual control) that have never used anything but Auto Mode. No experience or knowledge is necessary. I will teach you the three facets of photographic exposure, and how to use them to create the photographs YOU want to create.

We will spend six hours in the classroom, and the last two hours on a photowalk around the beautiful Bywater neighborhood. The photowalk will be an opportunity for you to put into practice what we have talked about in the classroom, with guidance and critique from me and your fellow students.

This is going to be fun.

Check out the details (and register) at http://www.novacvideo.org/

I spent the afternoon the at the gallery last week, and we got some pretty good shots. I love these guys.

I, uh, don’t have much else to say about it. So. Here.