Get Out There: Photography Meetup at the Butterfly Pavilion

He Survived Rosie, originally uploaded by Sheba Wheeler.

On Saturday, I met up with members of the Mile High Digital Photography School for a fun photo shoot at the Butterfly Pavilion. One of the things I love about participating in this group is that it forces me to get out and shoot for fun and experiment. This meetup definitely tested my resolve as well as my creativity!

Anyone who knows me knows that I am deathly terrified of spiders, and I'm not too keen on creepy crawly bugs such as beetles and ants either.



But I found myself fascinated by those things that scared me the most, especially this hairy tarantula named Rosie. Inspite of myself, I kept going back to it and watched while people bravely allowed the arachnid to crawl on their outstretched palm. I just knew I HAD to do it!

Taking photos of the critter helped me gain some confidence and getting encouraged by my friends finally did me in. I sat down, breathing hard and heart pounding. I thought just smelling my fear alone would cause the tarantula to take a chunk out of my hand. Instead, she crawled gently across my palm. I could barely feel her. If my hand had been made of sand, I don't even think she would have left a trail in her wake. I survived Rosie!





We spent the rest of the afternoon checking out the other critter displays and witnessed the release of the butterflies, taken just moments after they had emerged from their chrysalis.



All of the social group members had imagined this grandoise daydream where a staff member would open her arms, launching thousands upon thousands of butterflies into the air for a fantastical aerial display. Well, we were wrong. All the staff member did was place the butterflies on a tree where they were allowed to take flight when they were able.





We still got some great shots out of it, including this one image I turned in as my decisive moment entry. One of the butterflies flew and perched atop this young woman's head! She sure was a good sport about it...as I don't think I would have been able to stop myself from smacking it off my head.

Turns out my 75-300 lens on my Canon 5D was not a good choice for this shoot. I was unable to get as close as I wanted to get to an object because of the minimal focusing distance (even though the lens touts itself as a macro lens). There were simply too many people vying for the same space in such a small area, and I didn't have enough room to get to a focusing range my telephoto wanted. It beeped at me most of the evening, refusing to shoot at all in some instances. I may have done much better to shoot with my XTi (which has a dedicated macro setting). Can't wait to go again and get more practice. Part of being a successful photographer is knowing what gear to use in what shooting situation!

An Aside: Meet the New Man in My Life

A Smooch from Daddy, originally uploaded by Sheba Wheeler.

I know I promised a blog post about fine tuning my business plan on Sunday. But my sister blessed me with the best gift ever for Christmas this year that kept me busy all weekend -- a surprise visit to Denver with her son and my new nephew, 8-month old Eli! Turns out the best present had nothing to do with coveted photo equipment, but instead was time well spent with family. My sister lives in Texas, and I had yet to meet Eli (short for Elijah), so I’m sure you can understand my absolute excitement when I got the local phone call, showing that my sister was indeed in Denver with the baby.

After our mother’s untimely death in 2005 at the age of 48, I wasn’t sure if I would ever see my sister would ever truly smile again. The tragedy sparked my passion for photography, but my sister was lost, given that she was only 17 at the time, and it would take her longer to find her new place in the world. Now, there is definitely a light sparkling in her eye since she has her life to share with Eli, and I know his birth will lead to new life and meaning for my sister in other ways as well.

Now, back to the photography part of this post:
To get this image, I told AJ, Eli’s father, to just play with his son and pretend I wasn’t there snapping away like a mad woman. I love this simple image of a smooch between father and son. But I wanted to add something new to the old-standby pose. In this case, it was a cool new Photoshop action that made the photo black and white with an almost golden tint.

An action is a series of tasks that you play back on a single file or a batch of files - menu commands, palette options, tool actions, and so on. You can create an action that changes the size of an image, applies a filter to the image for a particular effect, and then saves the file in the desired format. I had fun all weekend playing with the actions.

I’m still very new to photoshop actions, but the options they present are almost infinite when you combine them with your own post processing workflow. Do a random Google search of “free photoshop actions," and download some today to take your imagery to a new level.

VOTE NOW For December's Photo Assignment: "THE DECISIVE MOMENT"

The polls are open! Please vote now for the best interpretation of December's photo assignment: THE DECISIVE MOMENT.

Inspite of the busy holiday season, the blog received four excellent entries for this difficult subject. So show them some love by voting today!

Instructor's Tip: Ice and Snow Shots

Image by Russ Burden
HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR FILLED WITH LOTS OF GREAT LIGHT AND PHOTOS FOR 2009!

Enjoy this week's "Instructor's Tip" by one of my favorite instructors, award winning nature photographer Russ Burden. To learn more about how Russ captured this image, join him on one of his photo tours. Visit Russ Burden Photography to get more information.

Ice and Snow Shots
Winter is upon us and the opportunities for snow and ice shots abound. Too many photographers put their cameras into hibernation this time of year. This is a mistake as many great images await the photographer who is prepared for the cold.

EXPOSURE - Meters are calibrated to reproduce what the lens sees as eighteen percent gray in the finished picture. In the end, this translates to gray snow. In order to prevent this, you may to need to dial in plus compensation. The amount is dictated by how much pure white is in the composition. Be sure to check the “Blinkies” and your histogram to get the optimum exposure. .

COLD - It’s essential to keep yourself and camera warm so you are able to operate when it’s cold. Dressing in layers is important because as the sun starts to warm the day, you can peel them off to maintain a given level of warmth without sweating. A hat and light gloves are mandatory as a lot of body heat is lost through the head and cold fingers will surely drive you indoors. Fleece socks and warm boots are beneficial. Give your camera the same attention. A pocket warmer taped to the area around the battery compartment will help keep the camera running. Keeping it inside your warm jacket when not in use will extend the life of the battery.

To take a class with Russ or a fellow Digital Photo Academy instructor in your area, check out the Digital Photo Academy. I took Russ' intermediate and advanced courses last year, and he continues to be a strong source of knowledge and encouragement as I progress in my photography.

Don't forget to check Take Great Pictures for Russ' most recent tips. On the home page, click on the "Photo Tips And Techniques" button in the left hand column. Additionally, check out his "Digital Tip of the Month" found by clicking on the Digital Photography button.

Saturday Morning Cartoons

Enjoy today's installment of Aaron Johnson's photocentric comic strip "What the Duck." The popular comic is celebrating it's 2nd year anniversary. Congratulations Aaron! And thank you for encouraging me and others to seek comfort in our sense of humor when the ebbs and flows of the photography business threaten to overwhelm us. The comic is available now for syndication as "W.T. Duck," appearing in a local newspaper near you!

This Weekend: Photo Meetup and Crafting My Business Plan

Later this afternoon, I will be meeting with several of my friends and photographic colleagues from the Mile High DPS Social Group. Together, this group has shared some memorable outings photographing the majestic, rocky crevices of the Garden of the Gods, zombies attacking downtown Denver patrons, colorful city holiday lights, and each other when our model decided not to show to her own photo shoot. Today, our subject will be butterflies taking flight at the Butterfly Pavilion. I am hoping to nail my entry for this month's blog photo assignment DECISIVE MOMENT while shooting at this event. A macro lens and wide aperture will be a must to get images similar to the one above and left, taken by my instructor and award-winning nature photographer Russ Burden.

The only thing the group needs more of is...well, you! We want to continue growing the social group, so membership rolls are open. To join, you have to be a member of the Digital Photography School forum, which in itself is a wonderful resource and has helped me on many an occasion to prepare for photo sessions and get advice on the business nuances of my photography studio. Once you join the forum, go to the navigational bar at the top of the page and click on QUICK LINKS. Scroll down to NETWORKING-SOCIAL GROUPS and become a member of the Mile High DPS Social Group. Our group is definitely one of the most active on the forum.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Tomorrow, I will be posting about the creation of my business plan for 2009. It's been a long time in coming. But I finally met with photographer and business manager expert Jim Turley to hammer out the details. Jim runs Sweet Water Images and teaches a "Passion + Profits" business management course at Illuminate Workshops.

If a photographer wants to catapult a passion into a livelihood, a business plan, profit and loss statement and effective marketing are essential. I found out it wasn't nearly as complicated as I had feared and that I had already been doing things and conceptualizing plans naturally that will help my business grow. Putting the plan down on paper and using it as a guideline to help gauge my profits will be essential to my ultimate goal of leveraging some investments from outside sourcing and creating a model that includes hiring other photographers to work under the Picture Your World Photography brand.

Get the Job Done: "Best Gift Ever!"

I got an email from my last boudoir photography client and the verdict is in: Her husband said his surprise CD of her sensual photo session was "the best gift ever!"

If you remember, my client's husband is serving in the War. Tired of hearing about how "hot the girls were in the Maxim magazines," my client said she wanted to give her husband a reminder of what he had waiting for him at home! And oh boy did she! Maxim ain't got nuthin on her:

"(he) finally opened his "Christmas present." I was able to video conference with him, and the look on his face was priceless! He loves them. He wants me to take more and he even has new outfit requests. LOL He said that he really wants to show them off, but at the same time he doesn't want any other guy looking at his wife. He can't stop talking
about them, and I know this is one Christmas gift he will never forget."

I am so glad I got to participate in this wonderful and memorable experience for my client and her husband, and I can't wait until our next session.