Melissa Surprise Photography Blog » 2010

Monthly Archives: February 2010

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OneLight…

February 20, 2010 – 2:28 pm

I have been eying this workshop from afar for the longest time. The problem, it always sells out and sells out fast. So when the new dates for the 2010 workshops were announced, I pounced on it. Now normally I am a natural light shooter. I love natural light, I love working with it, however it does have its limitations. I do use a flash for indoor events and weddings, but I never felt like I was a master of my off camera flash, I admit, somewhat feared it. I knew if I went to this workshop, I would not only no loss that fear, but it would also help expand the times in which I shoot but also help me with bad light or low light situations. Senior session outdoors at 7pm, lets go! And now that I am expanding my wedding photography business, I will have a slew of lighting ideas for reception halls. Please note, I am not looking into expanding into studio photography. I might consider light studio work in the future, but very limited. The OneLight workshop itself is based out of Atlanta, GA hosted by Zack Arais, Atlanta Music Photographer.

(The top left photo is Zack in his studio with one of our models. Top right, Zack showing us yet another lighting source in a studio setting. Bottom Left, one of our brave models in the freezing cold, Zack on the ground shooting. Bottom right, using our hands to meter. Yes my gloves have no fingers, easier to shoot with. )

Most of these pictures are pretty much straight out of camera. A slight curves adjustment and sharpened for web. Talk about a time saver!

Little photog technical talk. This photo was taken at 200 ISO, f/2.8, shutter speed of 1/4. I never thought I would be able to handhold a photo at 1/4 and have it as crisp as it is. You can see the lights of the cars driving by in the back ground. I was pushing limits I didn’t know I could.

By Melissa | Posted in Special Projects, Specials | Comments (7)

Client Gallery…

February 15, 2010 – 3:26 pm

This weekend I had the chance to swing by a clients home to take a peek at the the canvas gallery they picked up last December. I should hire mom to decorate my home for me, we have similar taste, straight out of the Pottery Barn catalog She took advantage of one of my canvas clusters, but broke them up to go into two rooms. The living room features (2) 16×20 gallery wrap canvases. The nursery features, (1) 32×20 and (3) 10×10 gallery wrap canvases. I love decorating the home with canvases. They are not only fine art, but they are fine art pieces of very special little people.

The living room entrainment system also features a nice table top collection of prints from our recent and past sessions. There is even a print of their cousin, who I had the pleasure of photographing in the past. (See me in the TV )

I would love to feature your gallery on my blog. Help inspire others in how you decorate your home with your custom art. pPlease send me a picture of your print or canvas displays to melissa@surprisephotography.com

By Melissa | Posted in Products, Special Projects, Specials | Comments (2)

Who Will She Root For…

February 14, 2010 – 8:50 am

Sweet baby “E” is proof that beautiful things can really happen when a Red Sox and a Yankee fan come together, fall in love, get married and start a family. The question is, who will baby “E” root for? Daddy is a Red Sox fan, Mommy is a Yankee fan, and they are all currently living in Yankee country. Baby “E” is 6 weeks young and just one well loved little girl, especially by her puppy dog “Daisy,” who gave me the best greeting at the door when I arrived. Baby “E” ran the show while Daisy supervised, they did a wonderful job.

Thank you again to the family for inviting me to come in and photograph you beautiful little girl. (GO SOX!!!)

By Melissa | Posted in My Family, Newborns | Comments (3)

New Paltz Times…

February 11, 2010 – 5:05 pm

I was recently contacted by Megan Labrise of the New Paltz Times to discuss my involvement with Lenses of Love, a fundraiser for Haiti orphans. Charity is a very important part of my life, so I jumped at the opportunity to be involved when my friend Sally Clark asked me to be apart of this endeavor. We all go through our struggles at time, but we always have to remember, there is always someone in a worse situation. The article came out yesterday so if you have a chance, be sure to pick up a copy. Thank you to Megan and Laurent to taking the time to meet with me.

By Melissa | Posted in Special Projects, Specials | Comments (6)

Firetruck…

February 9, 2010 – 11:09 pm

I love vintage and things with texture, so when I drove by this vintage firetruck, I knew I needed to stop and check it out. I have driven by it on several occasions and thought how I would love to bring my boys here to take some pictures. Well on this day I didn’t have my boys with me, but I did have my camera. It isn’t often that I take the time, or get the time, to photograph objects and really look deep into the substance of it. Looking deep into an old truck like this makes you question its history. Where has it been, what has it seen, who drove it, etc? The beauty of photographs, it brings history back to life.

By Melissa | Posted in Special Projects | Comments (1)

A Birthday Celebration…

February 7, 2010 – 10:07 pm

A couple weeks ago I got an email from this young lady asking me to do a photoshoot to celebrate her 17th birthday with all of her closest friends. I thought, “How Fun!” I would have loved to do so something like this when I was in High School. I actually got the pleasure of meeting the birthday girl and her mom prior to our shoot. As I got to talking to her, I discovered she too has a passion for photography and is even looking to study it when she goes away to school. Not only does she have a passion for photography, but modeling as well. She, as well as her friends, made my job so easy and did an awesome job working the camera. What wasn’t easy on us was the weather. It was a bit chilly out but at least we didn’t get the snow storm they were talking about for 2 days.

And if you ever find yourself in the Kingston area, swing by Dolce. It is a great little cafe with a killer homemade hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows and homemade whip cream, YUMMY!