Category Archives: People

Raji

October 18, 2014 Michael Banks Leave a comment

When I do a photoshoot there are many shots that get captured, but there’s always a select few that stand out; even if it isn’t at first glance.

This was a shot that I almost got rid of because of the angle I took it, but I used Photoshop to fix it and made a composite from it. Just because something isn’t great out of camera doesn’t make it a great shot.

Once I opened this in Photoshop, the logical next step was making a selection of the area that wasn’t a part of the background.I basically made a selection and performed a content aware fill, one of the processes that replace an object and mixes the outside area into the selected area. This was the result.

Next, I got rid of the shadow from the lights and decided to add an effect to play off of the pose that Raji made. I was contemplating colors to use for the effect and a design concept that I learned was to use colors from the subject and I thought that the pink in her shirt really stood out so that was the color I used from my brush effect.

Lastly I just did some clean up and some general color correction to the image to get the final product. Overall, it was a great lesson to not get rid of an image out of camera even if it isn’t technically or composition-ally idea. Photoshop can sometime save the day.

It was a joy to shoot Raji and I think the photo is a great reflection of that.

Blog, People, Portfolio

There’s Two of ‘Em (Mother’s Day Post)

May 11, 2014 Michael Banks Leave a comment

Recently I had the pleasure of taking pictures of Twins.

Justina, who happens to be my BEST friend, just graduated and commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army, wanted to take photos for her mother for Mother’s Day so I scheduled a photo shoot. Justina’s sister Christina is also in the Army as well, which is why they both wanted to wear their Army Combat Uniform.

Taking photos of twins is that much more challenging than taking photos of a couple or even a family because it’s TWO similar personalities that have different ideas. Like tug-of-rope.

Overall I still had a blast taking these photos and in the essence of Mother’s day I would like to wish all the Mother’s out there a Happy Mother’s Day. Because none of us would be here without you all.

Blog, People

Preparation is Key – A Family Photoshoot

February 21, 2014 Michael Banks Leave a comment

Just a few weeks ago I did my first family photoshoot. It went great and smooth due to great preparation on my part and the family as well. There was a location that was put out there. The Old Enterprise Mill. A definitely great location, when the weather is right. The other location we used was the train tracks downtown.

With getting ready for a photoshoot it goes without saying that you should adequately prepare for the shoot, if that is by getting posing ideas from other magazines or even Pinterest. Pinterest, believe it or not has a lot to offer in that area. There are loads of images that can get you inspired and you can simple pin them to a board to save them for later.

Having the family dress the part can make or break your shot as well. Their poses and inspiration can come easy, but the poses, location, and inspiration can just as easily break your photo. If everyone is wearing different colors and patterns it will not compliment each other. No matter how beautiful your location is, if everyone doesn’t compliment each other it is a BUST! You can help yourself and the family prepare by letting them know that.

The other way you can easily prepare is by clearing out your memory cards, charging cameras and flashes that you plan to use. Doing this mitigates possible issues that you may run into. The last thing that I usually do to prepare for a shoot is to go and “recon” the area where pictures will be taken to get an idea of the land to see where a nice photo could be done and how the light looks there in advance of the photoshoot. You should do it a day in advance, but if that is not an option, then you should go an hour or two before the client is due to arrive. I personally take pictures of the area because you can take that back with you and show future clients the area to suggest it for future shoots if they don’t have their own location in mind.

Here are some before shots of some of the spots that I scoped out and the after photo:

Blog, People, Portfolio, Uncategorized

“Solitude” – A Fashion Photoshoot

February 17, 2014 Michael Banks Leave a comment

Fashion! Shooting fashion requires a different spin on photography strategy than an average portrait, because with fashion the MAIN subject is the outfit. While your model and the pose is important, it is more important how they both compliment the outfit. Something that you should keep in mind is to make sure you have plenty of light for the outfit. using a simple lit background allows there to be no distraction or another item to compete with the outfit. A neat thing I personally like to add is a reflection at the bottom to create separation.

This photoshoot was based on a piece by Tuttie Lu, a fashion designer in Augusta, GA. The piece is called: The “Crush” Dress. It is a Jersey Dress with lace sleeves and gold zipper detailing that allows it to be dressed up or down. The model was Na’Jelica Burnett. If you would like to get in contact with either the model or the designer let me know.

I used a simple white background and a 3 Point Lighting system: 2 12×24 inch soft boxes to give it the blown out white background and to provide separation. I used a 48″ Octobox with a Honeycomb Grid to focus the light on the subject. I also used white glossy panels on the floor to provide the reflection and I shot it tethered to view the results as they came in through the camera.

Here are some shots from the shoot:

People, Portfolio, Uncategorized

Keeping it Simple

August 11, 2013 Michael Banks Leave a comment

A lot of time people look for photos to be these elaborate things. Today a part of this photoshoot was dedicated to a simple portraiture style. A lot of time photographers create photoshoots that have so many moving parts to where the model or the subject gets overpowered and lost in the scene. Sometimes it is as Poet Robert Browning originally said, “Less is More…“

This portrait is of a good friend of mine Keturah Mingledolph.

People, Portfolio

A Day at the Lake

August 10, 2013 Michael Banks Leave a comment

Here is a candid that I took at the lake.

Since it is Shark Week I thought it would be neat to get a perspective actually in the water… So I daringly took my camera with a 70-200 f/2.8 out in the lake, handheld, and took this shot.

I was a little nervous take it out on the lake, weather ceiling or not. This wasn’t a photoshoot or anything just a casual time at the lake. The shot was 1/500th of a second at f/4 @ 70mm. I did all the editing and post processing in Lightroom 5 . I wanted to stay out of Photoshop if I could.

Overall I had a great day at the lake today….always nice to relax or swim with heavy DSLR’s lol