I am in the fortunate position of being surrounded by amazingly kind, generous people. Luke Prottsman is at the top of this list. We met about a year and a half ago, and I'm continually impressed with his giving and caring personality. Anyone who knows him can vouch that my words are true. 

He asked me to try to get some corporate portraits for his work. These are what I came up with. 

Till next time, Cheers!

I got to shoot pics of the most adorable (second to mine) kids the other day. Josh and Dana Cramer needed some shots of their kids, Zeke, Max, and Miriam. They are all great, well behaved, and it was a blast. The light was good and it just seemed like all the stars were aligned. Check them out!

Miriam

Max

Zeke

More adorableness!

SOOO cute, and handsome! Thanks, Josh and Dana, for letting me have your kids for a little while the other day. It was a terrific learning experience.

Cheers.

The last time we visited my Dad and Moms home I got to peer into my dads past a little. He isn't the type of person to get all blubbery (maybe that's where I get it), but sometimes you can tell when something really has "touched" him on a different level. He brought out an old logbook, and in it was the date journal of my grandfather, Harry, when he was aboard ship in the U.S. Navy. Dad just realized that he had it and had never looked at it before this week. It was very moving to open such an old document.

 It was very cool to see because I never really knew my grandpa much. I have a few memories of him and grandma living at Park Madison apartments, in Burlington, and needing to go see them more often than I wanted to as a kid. Talking to dad over this book was a way for me to see into the past a little. 

He would point at certain dates and tell a story about "Harry" that was relevant to the time. Then he would pause and I could tell that it was starting to choke him up. We looked at the dates and the places and we marveled at where he had been. N.G. is New Guinea. S.F. is San Fransisco. He went to Canada, and several other continents, basically all around the world. 

His ship was hit by a kamakaze airplane. He survived, and went on other ships until his tour was complete. As you can see in this lower photo, in handwriting by my grandfather Harry, he was discharged. He served from December 20, 1940 to August 27, 1945. "Home after-------4 years 9months and 12 days"

Its interesting to note that the man's hands you see in the photos are his son's, my dad, who followed his dads lead and enlisted in the U.S. Navy.

Cheers

I took the boys out for a scooter ride for a couple of miles so I could check out this barn I've been "eyeing" for a while. I really wanted to catch it with the sun in the afternoon or evening sky. The weather cooperated and I was able to shoot it from several angles, this one being the best. Hope you like it.

I've got great post coming about my grandfather and my dad, so stay tuned!

Cheers!

My sister, Molly, is back from Estes Park to visit while Amos, her husband, is in Austin at SXSW. She came up for a while with Dad and Mom today and I was able to talk them into getting their pic taken. It is weird shooting relatives, because you know them so well. 

I'm very fortunate to have a very loving and understanding family. 

Cheers!

I built a setup to really drown people with light so I could do more with white balance and ISO. This is the first time I have taken pics with the new lighting. It is comprised of six, 30 watt halogen bulbs, and two stands made with PVC tube. It seemed to work pretty well, but I still need to get a "seamless"-a backdrop that is pure white. With this shot, I was going for an "antique" look.

Owen is such a cute kid. His imagination is amazing, and he catches us off our guard a lot. He has helped me remain young at heart. I told him not to smile-just hold still. That is pretty hard for a 5 year old. 

By the way, I would love feedback on my portrait endeavors. I'm really interested in getting better, so please let me know what I could do better.

Cheers

I was able to get some more portraits today. This time it was my good friend, Josh Cramer. He is a successful businessman in Iowa City and Coralville, Iowa. He is CEO of Cramer IT, as well as Cramer Development. 

Josh is one of those people who will stick with you no matter what. He has been with me for a number of years as a person I can trust. He has had a big role in my life and I appreciate his friendship immensely. He's the kind of person who thinks for a while before he speaks, which is rare. He is calm, collected and rarely do you see him angry. I was also able to catch his funny side, too. 

Yes!

Thanks, Josh. It was fun.

     I decided to start shooting portraits lately, mostly because I realized that I need the experience. Mostly when I shoot portraits it is just my wife or kiddos.      

     I have recently read a book-"Visual Poetry", by Chris Orwig. He has so much to say about photography and none of it is f-stops, gear, how to do this-or-that, etc. He talks about the philosophy behind what you are shooting. This approach is just what I needed because I feel that I get so wrapped up in gear, and acquiring stuff that I lose focus on what I'm doing and what the "end goal" is.

     The next few weeks I will be posting shots of stuff that I have learned about recently. Portraits are one thing that is, for me, telling. For me, to be able to get a "real" portrait, it has to feel like I have made some kind of connection with the person I'm shooting. I want you, the viewer, to see into the person and feel what they are feeling. I want their eyes to say something to you and leave you knowing something you might not have before.

    My first sucker was my cousin, Tony. At first glance he looks pretty rough. He's covered in tattoos, has a bald head and beard, and wears mostly black. Tony is one of the most caring and "real" people I know. He understands and listens. I wanted to catch that in a photo.

     I will be doing more shots of people this week and posting some of them here. Till then,

Cheers!