timmymarsee
FollowThis shot was almost an accident! I had him posed next to a wooden pasture fence, and he started walking toward this dandelion. I snapped a few as he picked all...
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This shot was almost an accident! I had him posed next to a wooden pasture fence, and he started walking toward this dandelion. I snapped a few as he picked all the seeds off in a big handful! Totally unplanned.
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Contest Finalist in Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 3
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo at the home of the sister of a former employer of mine. They live in the Floyd's Knobs area in southern Indiana, and the capabilities of what can be used as a background over there is really astounding. Everywhere you look, there are areas where small knobby "mountains" meet at the base of another one, and by shooting down toward my subject with the second mountain in the background -- such as you see in this shot -- you can create some GORGEOUS depth of field.Time
This is around 9 am, and I think it was on a Saturday. Weekends are my bread and butter as far as photography goes!Lighting
Most of the time, I used available light. This session was no different. I had an off-camera flash and a reflector available, but the sky was so overcast that I could really get the colors and the tones that I was looking for with some minor enhancements in Photoshop. But I did shove my white balance pretty far to the high end of the Kelvin scale!Equipment
I shot this with my Canon 5D Mark II and my 70-200mm f2.8L lens.Inspiration
I actually had Colton posed next to a really cool pasture fence that had some great wood texture. But by the time I had run back far enough so that I could shoot at 200mm, he had become very interested in a nearby dandelion! I threw that camera as fast as I could and got on my knees, terribly worried that I was going to miss what I could tell was going to be an extremely cute moment. I'm so glad I caught it!Editing
I do! I post-process everything in Photoshop. I work on the colors, and I specifically try to build a sort of unnatural "natural" vignette by using the adjustment brush in Camera Raw. I worked on his skin, I did some sharpening, and I brought some tones out in the background. What I really loved was the juxtaposition of those greens with the browns. I'm a sucker for beautiful spring colors, but the way that the grass popped right off the "fall-ish" background made my heart jump. I did enhance that rim light a little bit on his hair, but the sun was somewhat behind him, so the effect was already there. I just emphasized it.In my camera bag
I carry my 5D Mark II and my first-generation 5D, a 50mm f1.8, a 28-200mm, a flash, my Omega reflector, a tripod (for using my flash off-camera with a hotshoe extension cord), batteries, chargers, etc., etc. And I also own a Bolsey B2 film camera, as well as a Polaroid Land Camera. I'm dying to do a session with both of those, but time is tough to find these days!Feedback
Be really patient. When I photograph toddlers, I try to build a bit of rapport with them. If they're feeling natural and comfortable -- you can always tell -- they'll create more moments like this for you to photograph. I try to tell parents not to run in too quickly to turn them back around, just because you never know what they're going to do! I like to have enough room for them to explore, and I always try to keep the sun more or less at my subject's 2:00 or 10:00. That's just my lighting preference.