Family portrait photographer in San Jose - 85th birthday

Isabelle contacted me to take pictures of her family and extended family of 30 people. It was grandpa's 85th birthday, and the whole family celebrates it every year. This is one big happy family, and I tried to capture their happy expressions as much as possible with only 1 hour to shoot.

 

High fashion photo shoot in Chinatown, San Francisco part 2 ~ Victorian Romance.

Victoria was the first person I shot in Scott Robert's workshop. The group that signed up with Victoria was hesitant until Sarah (Sarah Dawson Photography) gave an incentive to have 6 minutes instead the regular 3 minutes for shooting her. Three minutes isn't a whole lot of time for a shoot, especially if you're trying to apply something new, so I jumped at the opportunity. These series of shots were at the stairs entrance to the Four Seas Restaurant. Who would've thought that this location would be a place for high fashion pics: little room to work in and tons of guests walking in and out of the restaurant. But we made it work -- it was quite an experience!

One flash was used for this series (because I left my other flash in the car - doh!). I desaturated the images but left a hint of color to give it that romantic tinted b&w magazine feel. The flash was held by my lovely assistant, Anna Wu (Anna Wu Photography). Many thanks again to Scott and team, and Jeremy and Zabrina (JeZa Photography).

Creative Fashion Director Monique Zhang ~ Creative Design and Styling http://www.facebook.com/MoniqueZhang ~ Monique Zhang, Fashion design ~ Justine Parish, textile design for pleats ~ Jana Morgan, cuff design ~ Naomi King Starlite Jewelry Designs, Gemstone Bracelet on wrist and as hair accessory, and Gemstone Earrings on Victoria ~ MODEL: Victoria Pham ~ Makeup and Hair Artistry Team: Jessie Weng ~ Alpha Borriboonratana (Sweet Fuss Hair & Makeup Artistry) ~ Ethel O'yang (eTheLook Beaty by Ethel) ~ Wardrobe Assistants: Anna Kwan ~ Sandi Lee ~ Mei Cheung ~~

SLR cameras, Photography, and Golf: What SLR camera should I get/buy?

My uncle who is an avid golfer, recently asked me my suggestion on what SLR to get after seeing some of my pictures from a recent shoot. This is what I said:


“Photography is like golf — the clubs only matter when you can tell the difference between beginner clubs and pro clubs.”

1. SLR Camera: For those just starting out like he is, I suggest getting the cheapest SLR from Nikon or Canon with the stock lens (to get a wide angle) and splurge on a 50mm 1.8 (for low light practice). There’s plenty of amazing things you can do for around $500-$600, and many have done it. Just check Flickr and browse pictures from one of it’s low end SLR cameras such as the Canon Rebel XT or the Nikon D40.
2. Money to burn, Classes to take: At this point, if you have money to burn, I suggest you find a photographer you admire that teaches workshops or classes. For myself, I took a community college studio course at West Valley College in Saratoga about 4 years ago. Each studio course ran for 12 weeks for the quarter, and cost a meer $27. I took it for a year, ending with an outdoor summer class. The class taught me the basics of lighting, photographer-subject interaction, and the importance of a qualified critique.
3. Practice, practice, practice: After getting the right education, make sure to practice, practice, practice. After that, practice some more. (that includes me!). I find that sometimes, the vision I had in my head and the pictures that would come out of the camera would sometimes mismatch, up to now. That’s because people pictures are dynamic — you never know what you’re gonna get from your subject. And lighting situations are sometimes dynamic.

Welcome!

Hi! I’m starting this blog for a couple of reasons:
■ To share some of my pictures that I’ve taken for various photo shoots
■ To answer some questions I get regarding photography. Instead of answering each individual person, I figured I could answer each unique question through this blog. Granted, many of these questions have been asked time and time again by many experts, but I think people like asking these same questions from people they know, trust, and have a style they admire
■ To share random thoughts and hopefully point it back to photography somehow

Each photographic journey is unique — people have different “photographic styles.” And to me, a “photographic style” is something intuitive that a photographer gravitates towards in terms of images he/she takes. I’m here to share my style, and hope to know yours.

Best of luck in your photographic journey.