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>>> heatherfeather, People Photo Challenge #8 & #10 winner
Heatherfeather won the people photo challenge #8: Summer Lovin' AND people photo challenge #10: Selfportrait.
WHO ARE YOU? Heather Dunn = wifey, mommy, wedding photographer and all purpose household help.:giggle
WHEN DID YOU JOIN DGRIN? March 2007; but I was much too chicken to post much at first.
WHICH FORUM(S) DO YOU FREQUENT MOST? People... always People. And then it branched into weddings and I drift back and forth. As a side note: I read almost every single post while working on wedding photos or waiting for actions to work their magic. You guys keep me from death by photoshop boredom... lol:giggle
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN PHOTOGRAPHY? It all started back in HS yearbook... I had a film Minolta P&S with a zoom that I loved and took really terrible photos with. And then I got my first SLR in 2000... it was a film Rebel XT2000. One day I added up all the charges for developing film from the photos I had taken that year and was amazed that I had spent several thousand dollars in just a few months. Going digital really made sense after that. Actually, I used to be a paper and glue scrapbooker, and the need for better photos of my kids to use is what made me get more and more interested in photography.
DID YOU HAVE ANY PHOTOGRAPHY TRAINING? I did take a darkroom class in college, but that was after I had already started my cozy relationship with photoshop. It made me crazy to spend so much time dodging and burning the old fashioned way when I could go home and click a few buttons and make it happen so quickly. My prof and I would get into it with the old "film vs. digital" debate. Funny thing is... he now teaches digital photography at the college... and the college hired ME to shoot their promo stuff. :rofl But mostly... I learned from books, trial and error + practice, and YOU GUYS.:lust
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU HAVE/USE? Canon stuff... It sure gets heavy. :roflA gripped 5DMII; a gripped 5D classic; 70-200L 2.8 IS; 24-70L 2.8; 24-105L; 35L; A bunch of 580EXIIs; 480EXII; STE2 X2; lightstands, brollys and a ton of miscellaneous other stuff like gels, polarizers, sandbags, & Fongs. I recently gave my Rebel XT and 28-135 to my 9 year old daughter.
When she shoots something other than 10,000 photos of the dog, it is super fun to see what she comes up with..
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE THING/SUBJECT/PLACE TO PHOTOGRAPH? I love people. Every singe person is interesting and beautiful. I love the variety of colors of skin and eyes and body types and hair and clothes. So naturally I love to take photos of people. You can take a gorgeous photo of a sunset or a mountain and I'll like it. But, put a person with a great expression and some nice lighting and it just makes it so much better for me. My favorite place to shoot is Alaska, since we happen to have the most beautiful scenery and the most beautiful people...anywhere. (Plus, I live here. It helps to be thankful.)
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PHOTO? Seriously? It depends on the day... I love photos of my kids. My thought is that there are just too many photos and not enough wall space.
WHAT'S THE BEST ADVICE SOMEONE HAS GIVEN YOU PHOTOGRAPHY WISE? Probably 1/2 a dozen times, Jeff Mann made me repeat after him this phrase: "I am a GOOD photographer, and I know EXACTLY what I am doing." I think he realized that what I struggled with the most was confidence... So often I felt as though I was faking it... the wannabe that can trick folks into hiring her. I thought photographers had some mystical knowledge and abilities to get every single photo perfect. But there is still so much more to learn. Meanwhile, my skills are enough to do what I need and run a pretty successful photography business. But don't even ask to look at my culled photos.
WHAT'S THE ONE THING/ADVICE THAT YOU WANT TO GIVE OTHER'S? Study light. It is the basis of every single photo. Figure out how it works and how to manipulate it.
WHO/WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCES IN PHOTOGRAPHY? To be perfectly honest, I don't spend a whole lot of time looking at the work of the masters... I find a photo I love, and then figure out how it was made and then try to make one of my own.
SO WHAT ABOUT YOUR WINNING ENTRY? Memorial Day weekend we went camping. I was having a blast experimenting with "shooting from the toes". I took a whole series of photos of my daughter and niece from an inch or so above the ground / mud / lake / stream without looking through the viewfinder. There were lots of tossers, (missed focus, horizon totally screwed) but the good ones were so fun and flairey in the late evening light (it was about 9:30pm) I had a hard time choosing which to use. Specs: 5Dclassic 24-70L 2.8 at 2.8, 1/1250th, 24mm, ISO 400.
Here are a sampling of few of the other keepers:
If you want to see more of Heather's work, go to her website: http://www.ambiencephotographyalaska.com/. Comments? questions? post them here!
For more info on the people photo challenges, go here.
WHO ARE YOU? Heather Dunn = wifey, mommy, wedding photographer and all purpose household help.:giggle
WHEN DID YOU JOIN DGRIN? March 2007; but I was much too chicken to post much at first.
WHICH FORUM(S) DO YOU FREQUENT MOST? People... always People. And then it branched into weddings and I drift back and forth. As a side note: I read almost every single post while working on wedding photos or waiting for actions to work their magic. You guys keep me from death by photoshop boredom... lol:giggle
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN PHOTOGRAPHY? It all started back in HS yearbook... I had a film Minolta P&S with a zoom that I loved and took really terrible photos with. And then I got my first SLR in 2000... it was a film Rebel XT2000. One day I added up all the charges for developing film from the photos I had taken that year and was amazed that I had spent several thousand dollars in just a few months. Going digital really made sense after that. Actually, I used to be a paper and glue scrapbooker, and the need for better photos of my kids to use is what made me get more and more interested in photography.
DID YOU HAVE ANY PHOTOGRAPHY TRAINING? I did take a darkroom class in college, but that was after I had already started my cozy relationship with photoshop. It made me crazy to spend so much time dodging and burning the old fashioned way when I could go home and click a few buttons and make it happen so quickly. My prof and I would get into it with the old "film vs. digital" debate. Funny thing is... he now teaches digital photography at the college... and the college hired ME to shoot their promo stuff. :rofl But mostly... I learned from books, trial and error + practice, and YOU GUYS.:lust
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU HAVE/USE? Canon stuff... It sure gets heavy. :roflA gripped 5DMII; a gripped 5D classic; 70-200L 2.8 IS; 24-70L 2.8; 24-105L; 35L; A bunch of 580EXIIs; 480EXII; STE2 X2; lightstands, brollys and a ton of miscellaneous other stuff like gels, polarizers, sandbags, & Fongs. I recently gave my Rebel XT and 28-135 to my 9 year old daughter.
When she shoots something other than 10,000 photos of the dog, it is super fun to see what she comes up with..WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE THING/SUBJECT/PLACE TO PHOTOGRAPH? I love people. Every singe person is interesting and beautiful. I love the variety of colors of skin and eyes and body types and hair and clothes. So naturally I love to take photos of people. You can take a gorgeous photo of a sunset or a mountain and I'll like it. But, put a person with a great expression and some nice lighting and it just makes it so much better for me. My favorite place to shoot is Alaska, since we happen to have the most beautiful scenery and the most beautiful people...anywhere. (Plus, I live here. It helps to be thankful.)
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PHOTO? Seriously? It depends on the day... I love photos of my kids. My thought is that there are just too many photos and not enough wall space.
WHAT'S THE BEST ADVICE SOMEONE HAS GIVEN YOU PHOTOGRAPHY WISE? Probably 1/2 a dozen times, Jeff Mann made me repeat after him this phrase: "I am a GOOD photographer, and I know EXACTLY what I am doing." I think he realized that what I struggled with the most was confidence... So often I felt as though I was faking it... the wannabe that can trick folks into hiring her. I thought photographers had some mystical knowledge and abilities to get every single photo perfect. But there is still so much more to learn. Meanwhile, my skills are enough to do what I need and run a pretty successful photography business. But don't even ask to look at my culled photos.
WHAT'S THE ONE THING/ADVICE THAT YOU WANT TO GIVE OTHER'S? Study light. It is the basis of every single photo. Figure out how it works and how to manipulate it.
WHO/WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCES IN PHOTOGRAPHY? To be perfectly honest, I don't spend a whole lot of time looking at the work of the masters... I find a photo I love, and then figure out how it was made and then try to make one of my own.
SO WHAT ABOUT YOUR WINNING ENTRY? Memorial Day weekend we went camping. I was having a blast experimenting with "shooting from the toes". I took a whole series of photos of my daughter and niece from an inch or so above the ground / mud / lake / stream without looking through the viewfinder. There were lots of tossers, (missed focus, horizon totally screwed) but the good ones were so fun and flairey in the late evening light (it was about 9:30pm) I had a hard time choosing which to use. Specs: 5Dclassic 24-70L 2.8 at 2.8, 1/1250th, 24mm, ISO 400.
Here are a sampling of few of the other keepers:
If you want to see more of Heather's work, go to her website: http://www.ambiencephotographyalaska.com/. Comments? questions? post them here!
For more info on the people photo challenges, go here.
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Comments
Congrats!
NAPP Member | Canon Shooter
Weddings/Portraits and anything else that catches my eye.
www.daveswartz.com
Model Mayhem site http://www.modelmayhem.com/686552
Comments and constructive critique always welcome!
Elaine Heasley Photography
Great shots, as always, Heather. Completely stunning!!
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It's SO satisfying to have the shot you voted for win!:D
Seriously Heather...er Fred....or whatever it is this week.....THAT shot was a great capture.....but after seeing the composite I think you probably had a hard time deciding which to enter....as they were all great.
....and how could ANYONE view the examples you've posted of your work here and not agree that you are a very talented photographer?
Now....
Repeat After Me....
"I am...."
" a very talented photographer...."
"...and I know EXACTLY....What I am doing!!!"
For Sure!
Thanks for sharing the photographs...AND a little sumthin sumthin about Heather!
Congrats!:D
Jeff
-Need help with Dgrin?; Wedding Photography Resources
-My Website - Blog - Tips for Senior Portraiture
I particularly like this (since it describes pretty much where I'm at most of the time): "I thought photographers had some mystical knowledge and abilities to get every single photo perfect."
Awesome shots, awesome "interview", awesome YOU.
Kelly
My Photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/freezethemomentphotography/
http://www.kfsphotography.smugmug.com
Who is wise? He who learns from everyone.
My SmugMug Site
ps...I love the Hatcher's Pass photo...sweet lighting on those mountians! Also I loved your whole set of Kathy and Gary. Matter of fact...I love all your work!
http://clearwaterphotography.smugmug.com/
@Steve: Don't you dare! Your inspiration is such a help to us! I really do wish I could come and learn some of the lighting mysteries you master.:D
@Elaine: Thank you! I just love what you do too... in fact I find myself attempting to duplicate some of your stuff that you take of your adorable little son. So sweet!
@L.K: That was a couple weeks ago... and now the sun doesn't go down very much at all today (summer solstice) I know for a fact that it gets twilight-ey around 2 and then begins to brighten. It sure makes for fun evenings! We dont' sleep much in the summer... but make up for it in the winter!
@Jeff: Thanks so much for always encouraging growth. You really are the greatest.
@Llewellen: Awwww thanks! It is so sweet to have photographers with work that I adore tell me I am getting there!
@Diva: And when I grow up I want to have your abiltiy to absorb and learn so quickly. So jealous of that skill of yours. (Thank you!)
@Kidzmom: Thank you!
@Andrew: Thanks!
@Joyce: Thanks! We'll have to get together again in the fall!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your style! Way to go!!
<Insert some profound quote here to try and seem like a deep thinker>
Michael Wachel Photography
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Thanks for the info---really helps in "getting-to-know" fellow dGrinners! Also, thanks for the reminder regarding confidence... I know that is one of my biggest challenges!
Marjohn
Images of Him Photography
John
Take more pictures!
MILOStudios
www.milophotostudios.com
Canon 5D MARK II, Canon EOS 450D
Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L, Canon 18-55mm
Canon 50mm 1.8, Canon 75-300mm, Tokina 10-24mm, Sigma 18-200mm