The Digital Photo Guy

Lessons from a Pin-Up Shoot

These are the best from a “pin-up-style” photoshoot with Tylor yesterday. My personal favorite is the first one in the ’57 T-bird with the red interior (all cars courtesy of Deer Park Winery and Auto Museum). A blue 1950 Studebaker is featured in the 2nd and 3rd photos.

All were lit with 3 strobes. The key light was on a stand and bounced off a Westcott 32″ umbrella. A fill light was set low to emphasize her hair in the T-bird and her legs in the Studebaker. The third strobe was used to add “pop” to the interior of the cars.

All 3 photos were touched up with Topaz Labs Adjust 4 to smooth the skin (not like she needed it) and add “pop”. Readers can try Topaz Labs plug-ins for free and, if they decide to buy, use the discount code “digitalphotoguy” for 15% off.

(I have no financial ties to Topaz Labs, they extend this discount to my readers because I am a recognized Photoshop Elements instructor)

I plan to offer a Pin-Up Shoot Workshop in the Fall. If you’re interested in a 4-hour posing and lighting class for $99, post a comment or send me an e-mail to be notified when it’s ready. I need a minimum of 8 students to schedule the class and book the venue.
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Monday Morning Tips – 06/20/10

Went to the Bernardo Winery in Rancho Bernardo for my annual “wassup” look-see. There’s always things that I never saw before and this time was no exception. While waiting in the parking lot for the people who had RSVPed for this Meetup, I noticed a row of old tractors and machinery that I had not seen previously. It’s possible they were always there but I had never hung around in the parking lot so it’s also possible I just missed them. Here are some of my favorites from the day.

     
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Close but No Cigar

Once again, not all of my entries were accepted for the San Diego Fair. This year, 4 of 5 entries were accepted and the fifth was rejected. See if you agree with the judges. Here are my entries. Post your guess as to which was rejected in the comments section (below).

On the other hand, the number of entries were up slightly from last year. I believe there were 4000 entries this year, up from 3800 last year. About 1/3 were accepted so I guess I’m ahead of the odds. Based on random chance, only 1 or 2 would have been accepted. Of course, being accepted is just the beginning. Now, I wait until June 11 for the results. Someday, I’d like to think I may be in the running for Best of Show.

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Accepted 2009 San Diego Fair juried competition

Accepted 2009 San Diego Fair juried competition

Not Accepted 2009 San Diego Fair juried competition

Not Accepted 2009 San Diego Fair juried competition

The interesting thing is that I printed both accepted photos on my Epson R1800 while both unaccepted photos were printed at a local “big box” store where I thought they did a better job with the skin tones. I wish I could ask the judges if the print quality had anything to do with their decisions. Next year, I plan to print all my entries in my office.

If you get a chance, stop by the fair which opens Friday, June 12 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in Del Mar, CA.

San Diego Fair – June 13 to July 5

Since I’m caught up on writing Monday Morning Tips for the next few weeks, here’s a mid-week update for people around San Diego. The Del Mar Fair (aka San Diego Fair) has a whole potful of photography events that you might want to check out. This link will open a PDF listing the dates, times and descriptions.

It’s too late to enter the juried photography competition but try to check out the exhibit when you visit the fair. Looking at others works will often give you ideas for improving your own photos.

There are also four 2-hour Photo Shootouts (2x Daylight, 1x Night and 1x Twilight). Click the links for PDF entry forms. You’re given 2 hours to make a photo and take it to the judging area to be downloaded and judged. If any of my former students wins, I’ll have a prize for them. Just send me proof of your win and the prize is yours.

If there’s enough interest, we’ll organize a GTG (get together) at the fair one Saturday and we’ll have an informal shoot with prizes for the best photos. Either leave a comment below or send me an e-mail. We’ll need at least 6 participants for a contest.

Photoshop World 2009 – Las Vegas, Oct 1-3

Yeah, I know, most rational people intensely dislike Las Vegas but it is what it is. PSW is a great way to flatten your PS learning curve.

Yeah, I know, it’s expensive but if you’re serious about developing your PS skills, it is what it is. A single Photoshop class at UCSD will set you back $595. At PSW, for $500 ($600 if you’re not a NAPP member) you have a choice of nearly 100 classes over 3 days. And, at PSW, a day is NOT 8 to 5.

If you’re still reading, click here to read all about PSW. It’s not training, it’s bootcamp! Failure in not an option, you WILL learn!

If you’re really not able to make it to PSW but want to know what you’re missing, send me an e-mail and I’ll pick up an extra Proceedings for you. These are nearly 1000 pages of notes and handouts from the conference. Please note – these are not free. You will have to pay for me to buy and haul these back.

If you plan to be in Las Vegas but won’t attend PSW, you can get a free ticket to the Expo here. Some of the best free classes are at the Expo where sponsors and exhibiters like Adobe, Epson and Bogen offer short classes on a range of subjects.

Finally, if you plan to attend and want to meetup to exchange notes, leave a comment. It’s always great to have someone you can split classes with when two classes you want to attend are opposite each other. It’s like having a virtual you.

Local San Diego Clubs

There are several informal photography clubs in San Diego that schedule shoots on a regular basis. I haven’t attended any in a long time because 1) I don’t have time and 2) I tend to be a solitary photographer.

This Saturday, May 16, the San Diego Digital SLR Photography Group has a shoot scheduled at Old Poway Park. Check their site for details.

On Saturday, May 23, The San Diego Photography Meetup Group has a shoot at Balboa Park for memebrs who also belong to pBase. pBase, for those who may be unfamiliar, is a very large photo sharing site. When you click on my Photo Galleries page, you’re actually being redirected to my pBase account.

I may attend this shoot since I haven’t been to Balboa Park in ages. If you’d like to carpool from North County, let me know.