https://www.patreon.com/posts/photo-nikon-d4-f-98934622

Over the past few years, I've noticed a shift in my tendency to get wrapped up in feeling like everything I share with other photographers needs to have some kind of overarching complex, technical, in-depth talking point. This could range from the specifics of the gear used, a brand-new piece of gear or software, a fancy technique during capture/editing, or some extreme "making something out of nothing" environmental behind the scenes.   Often, I'm so fixated on figuring out these talking points that I hit a kind of paralysis before I even begin, ending up posting nothing at all because by the time I start to get a handle on it, life has moved on, and I either have no time or I'm bored with whatever half-baked idea was in progress.  There's also the exhaustion of creating a thing for patreon, figuring out how much to make free, or put behind the paywall, only to then need to create all the things (reels, stories, summaries, titles, thumbnails, clips, etc etc etc)  so that I attract new patrons as supporters come and go.

But, I want to try and share more insights that take things back to simplicity. Mostly, I want to dive into singular photos. What are that photo's basic camera settings, what did the original file look like, what was the story of how it happened, share some contextual images surrounding that photo, and what is the final edit. 

If there happen to be interesting talking points to go along with it then so be it, but *most* of my favorite photos simply happen in the course of me consistently doing my work without thinking about a future patreon post.

 

(above) 85 mm_1-320 sec at f - 1.4_ISO 400

I also want to try and commit to making sure patreon is the singular place where everything I put out is ultimately shared in its highest value form. For these deconstructions I will try to write a full article (for those that prefer reading) and share a full video (for those that prefer video) all in one combo post. 

Usually, the way I work is to do one or the other, and it's just created a feeling like I'm never offering up a consistent enough approach. 

I'm excited to start with the above image. It's always been a favorite of mine because of a few things:

1) It's made with 85mm, which I almost never use for portraits

2) It was one of the first times I realized a finger smudge on a lens element can create a smear that looks like flare

3) It's made in collaboration with the videographer who had an ultra bright light behind the couple

(above) 35 mm_1-250 sec at f - 1.4_ISO 3200

Now, let's start with some photos that led up to the moment of the final shot. The bride wanted a quick photo with me, so I setup my flash and gave her friend my camera to take it. Yes, if you look closely... it's out of focus, and obviously not well composed, haha.

(above) 35 mm_1-250 sec at f - 1.4_ISO 3200

I took the camera back and proceeded to snap off a few more images (in focus!). I'm using bounce flash for these, and though ISO 3200 might seem very high while using flash, one of my early break through realizations was that bouncing flash with high ISO was not only completely okay to do, but typically enabled me to shoot in areas where I never thought possible.

The side of the building you see in the background is the same wall that continued over my right shoulder, and is all I'm using to bounce off of. Yes, I'm stuck in a bit of a "zone" where the bounced flash will look good or not (things start to get a little directionally unflattering IMO with the image of the bride hugging her sister) but the soft quality of light is so beautiful to me that I'm often willing to make that tradeoff.