Let’s talk about the forgotten years. You know you have thousands of pictures of your firstborn as a young child, but what happens as they approach those awesome teenage years? Yes, I did say awesome? Perfect? No, but definitely worth remembering! I’m so thankful that we took Skylar out to celebrate turning 13. She hasn’t had professional portraits taken in years and her senior pictures are still a few years away.
Right now she is an 8th grader who just got braces. She’s a competitive swimmer with MAC. And did I mention she’s just an all around wonderful young lady! She definitely found her inner model! Here’s shes showing off this darling daisy top and sunglasses! Super cute!!
East Mesa Locations for Professional Portraits
If you know me at all, you know that “locations” aren’t really my thing. If everyone shoots there, why would I want to go there too? I prefer to use at least some out of the way pretty spots that most people don’t even think about for pictures. And yet they are stunning!!! This is just in one of the nearly neighborhoods in East Mesa. Nothing fancy, just our typical desert brush with gorgeous afternoon sunlight. But look at this stunning girl when you put it all together!
Style Closet Dress & Accessories
Skylar has an awesome sense of humor. She’s goofy and really enjoyed the fuss being made over her…once she got the hang of it! When she found out about our Style Closet, she was thrilled! She chose this darling dress which just happens to have a belt that can be used in multiple ways. So when Skylar first tried it on she came proudly dancing out of the bathroom with the scarf around her neck like a celebrity! It is something that I know her mom won’t soon forget. It is about the experience, enjoying this age, and making some time to remind your teenagers how much they are loved. Sometimes that gets lost in all the hustle of school, sports, friends, and teenage drama.
Yes, the hats are a must with all my teen and senior girls! This particular blue hat is always a favorite and looks gorgeous with Skylar’s beautiful long curls!
I’m here to help and am always willing to answer questions. There are no dumb questions, trust me, I’ve asked them all. What may seem like common sense to some is new to someone else no matter how long you’ve been shooting! Today I’m just gonna ramble a little about some basics and see what happens!
What Lens Do You Use?
Oh boy is this a loaded question! It is by far the most asked question that I get from both hobbyist and professional photographers. The answer is easy to give, but much harder to put into practice. Let’s start with the easy answer. What’s in my bag?
Canon 5D Mark III
Canon 70-200mm 2.8L
Canon 28mm 2.8
Canon 85mm 2.8
Canon 24-70mm 2.8L
Sigma 15mm 2.8
Clear as mud, right? I went through exactly the same thing! I used to get so frustrated when I’d ask and the photographer would reply with “well, what are you trying to do?” Uhhhh, get awesome pix like you? LOL! No joke, we all thought like that as beginners and we are ALL beginners at some point! Worse yet I would ask and they’d tell me. I had asked for a great lens for sports and bought my 70-200mm 2.8L which I bought in 2009 and is still my baby. Over the years I took portrait classes and one webinar in particular really had me stumped. I had the same camera and same lens, but VERY different results. Mine were, well, not great. Hers were amazing! Then I started to notice something. While we were both using the 70-200mm lens, my focal length was all over the place. Hers was at 200mm nearly all the time.
So What? Bokeh vs Compression
So think of focal length as if you stand in one spot facing your house. The smaller the focal length, the more of your house you’re going to get in the frame. Nearly everything will be in focus, due to the compression (or lack thereof). Just stick with me and stash that in your brain for now. Everyone seems to think that bokeh produces those beautiful creamy images, and that is one part but not the whole picture, so to speak. So now go stand in front of your house using an 85mm. You’re gonna get maybe half of your house. Next, use a 70-200mm lens, 135mm, or long focal length. If you’re still standing on the sidewalk, you’re likely get a window and front door. Why? Because of the compression.
Now let’s put that into practice. For years I shot all my sessions with my 70-200mm getting nice portraits and creamy backgrounds. This image was taken with the 70-200mm at a focal length of 140mm. All that color behind him? That’s sun and trees at Tumbleweed park. All compressed into a gorgeous, creamy background.
Too many photographers think that creamy backgrounds come from shooting wide open with an aperture of f/2.8. That’s only part of the equation and honestly, that thinking will often result in one eye that’s in focus and another that’s out of focus. Again, speaking from experience. So in order to get a shot like Jalen’s and get that creamy background, I knew I needed to use a long focal length. So this was taken with a focal length of 140mm and an aperture of f/4. Not even f/2.8! I could have closed down even more if necessary and still had this compressed background. Say for example, if Jalen’s parents were standing behind him. I’d want them in focus too, so I probably would have closed down to f/5.6 and adjusted the shutter speed and/or ISO accordingly.
When I’m with a client, I keep my 70-200mm lens on most of the time. It’s an amazing portrait lens! So here’s Adrienne which was also shot with the 70-200mm lens, but this time at a focal length of 75mm and an aperture of f/4. See the difference? Still get the upper body, but the background isn’t all compressed. You can see the lake and tall grass, get some sense of the surrounding and Adrienne still fills a good part of the frame.
Now let’s get serious. What happens when you want those gorgeous eyelash shots and you want all the lashes in focus? Well, following the thought that shooting wide open will give beautiful bokeh just doesn’t work in this case. This is really the perfect example of using the right lens to get the background compression but still keep your subject in focus. This image was taken with the same lens, focal length set to 110mm, and an aperture of f/4.5! Yep, 4.5 not 1.8 or 2.8. If I had used my 85mm @ f/1.8 the result would have been very different. See, she’s not perfectly straight. Think of aperture as a thickness, like a piece of glass. Using an aperture of f/1.8 would have resulted in one eye being more in focus or her eyes being in focus but not her nose.
Wide Angle Lens
Now let’s jump to the shorter focal lengths. This image was shot with a 28mm lens because I wanted the full picture. I wanted the background, the water, and the surroundings. Using this lens, I can be pretty close to my senior and still capture all of this. I could have easily been sitting in this exact same spot shooting, changed to the 70-200mm lens and taken a closeup of Adrienne! What would have happened? All that tall grass behind her would have been compressed. Results might not have been ideal due to the lighting, but that’s a post for another day.
Let’s get out away from the pretty backgrounds into urban downtown Phoenix. This image was also taken with a 28mm focal length. Notice how I got everything in the frame and was able to make Mercy take up a good part of the frame but still fit in all the urban landscape.
What lens do you use?
Let’s get back to the original question and answer. The answer is, it depends what I’m shooting and the look I’m going for.
When you might use a wide angle lens or short focal length, like a 28mm:
Want a large area
Landscapes
Tall buildings
Urban areas
Lots of surroundings
For me, 28mm let’s me get these fun shots like the one of Mercy. It let’s me catch gymnasts jumping or a football player throwing a football and I want to capture a lot of the field and stands. It also lets me create the illusion of something being larger or bolder, like a car. The closer you get, the more distortion you get. Play with it! Wide angle lenses can really bring variety to your portfolio!
When you might use a long lens and long focal length, like a 70-200mm:
Don’t love the background and want to blur it out
Headshots without distracting surroundings
You want the texture but want the focus on your subject
Creamy backgrounds
My 70-200mm is still my go-to lens for portraits. I get great headshots and people are always requesting those “gorgeous blurry backgrounds.” It also lets me get further away so I’m not right in someone’s face. The downside of course, for those of you who have worked with me, is that I have to back up. Then back up more. And then back up a little more to get everything in the frame!
Next time we’ll talk a little more about aperture and bokeh. Have more questions or need clarification? Shoot me an email!
On occasion I’ll be paging through poems or quotes and come across something really meaningful. That was a few months ago, but today is the day I’ll finally write and share. If you know me, you know photography is not a job for me. It never has been. But finding what I love the shoot? Now THAT was a job! It took years of shooting anything and everything from newborns and babies to families to seniors. Taking every job I was offered. Pretty much everything but weddings…and I even tried that once. Where did my love fall? With teenagers. Hands down, no question about it. Many people think I’m crazy, other photographers wouldn’t even think of taking on a full schedule of teenagers. But for me, it is a time in their lives that I truly love! They are acting out, learning about themselves, and growing up. I love being a part of it, hearing about their passions, sports, school, friends, music, and even the drama. I love it all!
And then I hear the comments…
You know the ones.”Lookout when your kids are teenagers!” “The teenage years are worse than terrible twos!” “I can’t wait to get my teenagers out of the house!” Did you ever stop to think that your kids hear this? Even if it isn’t from you, everyone seems to have this impression of teenagers. So in my search, I found this lovely poem written by Natalie Stafford. Let’s just say it puts it all in perspective.
A Positive Outlook
We all know how much words mean, both positive and negative. When teens hear so much negative talk, of course they’re going to take it to heart! So I’m going to take the time to talk about some amazing teenagers, some just starting their teen years and some who were clients years ago and are now in their 20’s. I can honestly say that I have NEVER had a teen that I didn’t love. I’ve had some that were insecure, some that said they hated senior pictures. Most, if not all were nervous. I love keeping in touch with the families to see how everyone is doing! If you’re one of my past seniors or their parents, please reach out and let me know how everyone is doing! I’d love to catch an updated headshot if possible and blog/brag about them!
From full college scholarships and successful sports careers to engagements, law school, and so much more! Teenagers have as much to offer the world now as they did then. I’m so proud of each and every one of the high school seniors and how they’ve started off their young adult lives! Below are just a few of the teens who I’ve kept in touch with and watched them as they begin their adult lives.
Perry High School Graduate, Kelci Abernethy
Check out Kelci’s senior portraits from 2015! And if you want to see some awesome baseball pictures, you won’t want to miss her brother Connor’s senior portraits!
If you have kids and teens but haven’t visited Hands Free Mama, take some time to check it out! You’ll see this poem as well as many other resources on parenting your teenager!
Fine Art Portraits: “Art is About Love…Not Likes.”
Recently I received a newsletter from one of my professional print labs and it said “Art is About Love…Not Likes.” The world we live in is so used to posting online that this generation will be by far the most photographed ever! Did you see that? EVER! But what do we really have? Images on your phone that could easily get lost or deleted. Images on a USB that is stored away in a drawer. Old CDs of images that you promised you’d print. Some day. However, professional photographers have always printed heirloom pieces of fine art for their clients and Magical Memories by Michelle does exactly that. Do we offer digital files? Yes, but the main purpose is to keep them for archival purposes and backups. The fine art we offer our clients are not products you’ll see elsewhere. Even our standard “Signature Silk Prints” aren’t something that all professional print labs offer. All of these beautiful keepsakes are combinations of products from our favorite vendors.
Signature Silk Prints
These gorgeous heirloom prints are printed on crystal silk paper. While many people choose to frame their prints, I offer a line of modern ready to display fine art. These mounted prints are thick so they aren’t easily damaged and offer multiple ways to display them. Yes, you can frame them! Because they are rigid, they are also beautifully displayed on your choice of easels. If you prefer a modern frameless look but still want to hang them on your walls, there is a secret. Are you ready? 3M Command Strips! Yes, if you’ve ever seen my office walls, all of the portraits are hung with Command Strips! It makes it much easier to correct if something is crooked or if the spacing isn’t quite right. I’ll be sharing my custom wall displays soon, so be sure to check back!
5×7 Signature Image Box
Since nobody can ever choose a favorite, our Signature Image Box was introduced in 2017. So now you can order all your favorites, choose a couple to display, then store the other prints safely in the image box. This 5×7 image box also comes printed with your favorite image and text of your choice, making these a truly one-of-a-kind keepsake! The false bottom fits perfectly inside and holds your USB safely so it doesn’t get lost.
The Signature Image Box comes complete with 10 double sided prints. Yes friends, that’s 20 images! Can’t decide on a favorite? Pick one side and simply turn it around the next day! If you want the entire collection we can do that too! Check out this huge display from one of our senior guys! It has a deeper box that fits up to 40 double sided prints, then we added 8×10 prints as well. Really can’t get much better…or so we thought!
5×7 Luxury Image Box
While I love our wooden Signature Image Box and it is definitely one of our biggest sellers, I always keep my eyes open for new items from our professional print labs. Sure enough, along came this beauty which is now our Luxury Image Box. This one is also sized to hold 5×7 prints and comes custom printed with your favorite image on the cover, but it opens like a book and can have both the spine and back printed.
11×14 Luxury Image Box
Now, let’s just say you want larger prints to display, or a variety of sizes. Check out this stunning 11×14 Luxury Image Box! So now you can choose any combination of double sided prints in 11×14, 8×10, 8×8, and 5×7. The possibilities are endless! These are perfect for larger wall shelves or entry tables. And of course the folio box itself is worthy of a prime spot in your home. While the sample shown is from one of our beautiful senior girls, these really become the perfect way to hold an entire family session! Grandparents, this is your dream! Fill it with prints of all your children and grandchildren so you can enjoy their sweet faces on display in your home!
