Couples now are getting braver with their engagement photos. Let’s face it, we’re younger and we like different things. Some couples are taking the opportunity to get creative, get expressive. Some, like Keith and Sara are seriously running with it!

A couple of weeks ago I was approached by Keith and Sara to photograph their wedding. I had done some work for their church last year so when she found me on Google her and her fiance Keith decided to use my services for their wedding next year. Keith and Sara hired me to take their engagement photos as well. As scheduled, we met up last Friday evening at a local park and had a great time.

Keith and Sara are some of my favorite kinds of clients. They want to have fun and they want their photos to be “outside the box”. Those two things translate for me, not only into getting to have lots of fun myself, but also really do what I truly do best: be creative.

The location we chose was a small lake, just inside PG County. It bumps up right against a some single-family homes, but sports some pretty interesting historical stuff. Namely an old wooded area and stonework bridge which originally functioned as one of the main roads in the city. The setting offered an excellent backdrop for our images. Sara was clear that she was not especially interested in the hoaky-traditional-cutesy pictures (not that there’s anything wrong with those!). She wanted something fresh, creative and a little bit “edgy”. That’s exactly what we went for.

I wanted to communicate an antiquated feel in these images. So while shooting, I intentionally chose slightly non-traditional focal points. Doing so helped to create a spontaneous feel and a looser focal precision more common older photographic equipment.

click to view larger image

I also caught a number of shots which made effective use of motion blur to not only communicate movement but add to the dated feel of the images as a whole. For these images, and a number of others, I chose a classic high-contrast black and white which complimented the motion blur as well as furthered the photos theme as a whole.

click to view larger image

For some of the images, I also made a heavy use of film aging—a technique within Photoshop to give images the feel of aged color prints. Sort of like something you might find in a shoe box in your attic. This technique was also married to some more expressive modeling of the couple which really turned out great!

click to view larger image

Our shooting day was extremely overcast, so all of these photographs were shot with available light. In order to achieve the shallow depth of field, I primarily used a Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens. For some shots I used a Canon 16-35mm f/2.8, although none of those images are featured here. Adjustments to color and tone were all made in post, after the shoot.

No Comments »

Ever since I was very young, I can remember my father’s Best of National Geographic coffee table book hanging around our house. It was rarely opened and read (probably because we didn’t have a coffee table). On the front cover of the book was the famous National Geographic photograph of the Afghan girl. I can’t post the photograph here, but here’s a link to the image on the Nat Geo website. It seems that on some level that image was burned in my brain and in a way expresses itself in many of the photographs I take. Perhaps not obviously, but as I look through the lens of my camera, that image is a constant influence.

This past year, I met a woman with a similar aesthetic to the Afghan girl. Albeit, she is less ethnic in comparison, however, her features are stunning and I could not allow myself to pass up the opportunity. So, this past weekend, we arranged for a photo shoot in the honor and tradition of the original image by Steve McCurry.

I wanted to capture a similar sincerity in the subject’s facial expression, but with a kind of fashion conscious flare as well.  With the exception of a few very minor blemishes, these images below are largely unaltered since their capture.

click to see larger image

Another aspect of McCurry’s original image was the apparent depth in the tones of the Afghan girl’s clothing. In the images below, I attempted to emulate that same feel using the rich yellow in her dress and the heavy blue in the background.

click to see larger image

Finally, in these last images (taken at the same time as the third image in the first series). The white and brown head covering, along with the pale green tunic create a kind of military overtone. To add to that, I arranged a second strobe to send light through the fence on her right, creating the light pattern you see on her tunic. From the military subtext, contrasting her beauty and current cultural happenings, I found these to be an unexpectedly intriguing composition.

Click to see larger image

Most of these images were shot at very low apertures to aide in achieving the shallow depth of field. All of these images were captured with either a Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens, or a Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 lens. I hope you enjoy looking as much as I enjoyed shooting!

No Comments »

Well, the short answer: a lot.

I can’t believe it’s been over a month since I’ve posted on here. Talk about letting things slide! So, I thought I’d use today as the chance to fill you guys in on what’s been happening with me, my artwork and with Petruzzo Photography.

The past few weeks I’ve endeavored in some new territories. On September 21st I participated in a Wedding Showcase being held in PG county. It was my first venture into the mass-wedding market and a good experience. I enjoyed meeting the brides as well as the other photographers selling their services. I also made some interesting connections with various other vendors. Hopefully my gallery will reflect some of those interesting connections in the near future (exotic cakes?).

I’ve also been spending more time in the volunteer sector. Two weeks ago I spent Saturday afternoon in Severna Park at the first annual Eco Arts Festival. The purpose of the festival was to help get the community and local businesses motivated and talking about environmental issues. The festival, while small, packed a punch. There was a good amount of informative literature, good food and friendly people. Many businesses and vendors set up shop to promote their green-business. The festival also enjoyed live music and a moon-bounce. I was kicked out of the moon bounce.

All in all, it was a pleasure to meet the vendors at the festival and to hear about their efforts to reduce the stress on the environment. It was also a pleasure to see the community come out to enjoy the event and get involved themselves.

In business news, I’ve replaced my primary shooting camera body with a new Canon 5D. I’ve also added a new Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L lens (just so happens to be my favorite these days!). And, although it might not be too exciting to you, I got quite a killer deal on a Pelican 1560 case to house my lighting rig.

Thanks for staying interested folks. I have various interesting shoots coming up this month and I’m excited to share them with you all!

No Comments »

Ah, it’s been a long time in the planning, but I’ve finally worked it out. A convenient, easy to use method for getting you your pictures faster! It comes in the way of the new Petruzzo Photography Proof & Print Service. The service is hosted by an excellent company who will handle all of the credit card processing, keeping things secure, as well as making sure you get your products as soon as possible.

The great part is, you’ll get to take a look at things as soon as they’re ready. No more waiting for a proof CD to arrive in the mail. As soon as I’ve prepared the images, you’ll be able to get a look at them, share them with friends, or post them to your favorite social networking site. Hey, it’s up to you.

You can also order great prints and gifts. You can order prints in various sizes and dimensions, as well as various photo-finishes (i.e., glossy, matte or lustre). When it comes to pictures of the kids, or the wedding, there are also great gifts available too. Things like mugs, mouse pads and puzzles. Or, you could add a really personal touch to your wedding invitations with US Postal Stamps featuring the bride and groom-to-be.

But the best part is that the new system allows me to make my private and creative services more accessible. My sitting fees can be lower, then you only pay for what you actually want. It means you save time and money, and I get to spend more time doing what I love: taking pictures of you.

Keep an eye out for “free-seating” days. It’s a chance for you to get some really great pictures at a really great price! But, more about that in the coming weeks.

No Comments »

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 50,000 Christians gathered on the Washington DC mall this past Saturday. Their purpose was fasting and prayer for various social, economical and spiritual issues affecting our nation. The gathering is known as the Call, and it happens a few times a year all over the country.

I was invited by a friend attending the event to join him, so I decided to cover the day with my camera on an unofficial level.

The event began at 10am and ended at 10pm. Prior to the event the Call’s leadership team requested that the participants consider fasting for the duration of the event. Many participated in that manner. However, in a crowd that size, there were still plenty of Starbucks cups and McDonalds wrappers to be sighted.

Among the major social issues discussed and prayed for during the Call was abortion. An organization known as The Cause was  a major presence on the mall. Their known most for their silent prayerful opposition to abortion, all over the world. You might recognize them. They’re the folks with the bright red tape across their mouth that reads “LIFE” in big bold letters. The “LIFE” stickers were nearly everywhere you looked and on nearly everything. People, clothes, chairs, umbrellas, trees, water bottles, children, babies. It was clearly a dominant theme.

In addition to the Cause, various charismatic groups helped to spearhead the movement. IHOP (International House of Prayer) in Kansas City and Morning Star Ministries were among the most notable presence. However, the Call’s official statements made clear it was unimportant who in particular was present.

Just outside of the mall, on a street corner, a group of zealous Christians took up opposition to the Call. A group of four men, one at a time, stood on a platform on the street corner shouting into a bullhorn. Their message was largely convoluted. Furthermore, it seemed more in line with the Call’s message than they knew. Had they stopped shouting into the megaphone, they might have noticed. But of course they didn’t and their abrasive attitudes sparked anger in the folks passing by. Ironically, many of whom were there attending the Call.

Aside, of course, from the disruption of a few divisive Christians, there was a surprising level of unity among various Christian denominations. Dozens or more denominations were represented in the crowd and it seemed that the majority were participating.

In this gallery, there are no photographs of the speakers or worship leaders. The reasons are twofold. First, the emphasis among the leadership of the Call was the prayer and participation of the attendants. They did not want their presence to be a hindrance or to attract too much focus. This lends to my second reason, the crowd toward the front and sides of the stage was very densely packed. While I could have worked my way close enough for some quality photographs, I opted not to. Therefore I purposefully spent my time and attention seeking photographs that most clearly captured the crowd.

I shot the majority of this event handheld, on a Canon 16-35mm 2.8L lens. I spent a short period using a 70-200mm 2.8L mounted on a monopod, but found it often limited my mobility among dense crowds.

1 Comment »

keep looking »