Hello everyone!
Hope your year is going well!
I’ve been as busy as ever, so let’s get caught up.
Weddings – they missed me!
As we have reconnected with the wedding coordinators, we are finding that they missed me. Why? Because so many of the new photographers they have been working with just don’t have the same professionalism. For example, they don’t want to play by the rules, or work with the other vendors, and they are not prepared to work through problems that happen at almost every wedding. That’s sad to hear, but it is mostly because a lot of the photographers have never worked with another experienced photographer for any length of time before they started covering events themselves and so have no training on how to be a prepared good professional.
I have always taken the job of documenting this once-in-a-lifetime event very seriously. So, before I set out on my own, I worked for a year (apprenticed) with another photographer. The first thing I learned is that I had the perfect patient personality to work in this type of photography. I then learned how to be the good professional, play by the rules, and how to be prepared. I had a good foundation of basic photographic skills, but I found out where and who to go to be the best I could be. Today, I am still learning new tricks, and shooting in a new style, but that professionalism that I learned early on is still a part of what I have given to my clients from the beginning.
Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI)I had a great time speaking at this year’s WPPI convention in Las Vegas March 16 – 19th. This year, I talked about the secrets of getting great results in taking low light photographs for editorial, wedding and portrait photography.
Fuji Film has gone through a lot of changes over the last couple of years and you could see that with the new printers, software and book binding products and services they where offering in the booth this year.
As usual, I connected with allot of photographers I only see once a year at this event. We talked about what changes they had made to their business over the last year. It was also good to see the new products and services being offered in the trade show, and to talk to my service providers.
Phantom of the Opera
As most of you know, I have been working with the Orange County Performing Arts Center (OCPAC) for the last seven years, and I get to do a lot of amazing things because of that relationship. While the Phantom of the Opera was in town last month, the company changed out one of the principal actors who played Meg and hired me to do the new public relations stills.
We did the photographs on the stage with the new actor, Jessi Ehrlich, in full costume as Meg. She had three people looking after her: make-up, hair and a dresser. I had five people looking after me, helping me with the lighting and background, as well as the stage manager and a company representative helping me direct the shot. After meeting Jessi on stage, I got the light level and temperature to set my camera, and then ran down into the seating area to take the picture. We worked for about 20 minutes until we had what we wanted. I said “that’s a wrap” and everyone disappeared and that was it. What fun!
The final image turned out to be the third one we did. They loved working with me and the final image so I hope to have another opportunity to do something like this again down the line.
UCI Extension Class – “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People
For the 7th year, I taught my basic portrait photography class for the UCI Extension program in this spring quarter, April1st to May 6th. The classes where held from 7pm to 9:30pm on the UCI campus in Irvine.
We had a wonderful group of students this year and we look forward to teaching the class again next year.
Classes Workshops Personal Instruction Coaching
Classes:
For the very first time, I am offering the same class I have been teaching at UCI extension at my studio in Laguna Niguel. This location allows us to have more time demonstrating work outside using natural sunlight.
· “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People”
Course Description:
Students will learn how to use their own cameras to take great portraits. Doug will share simple techniques and “tricks of the trade” in photographing people using available light and other lighting sources. Class assignments will be done using the cameras already owned by the students. Work inside and outside the classroom will be done to demonstrate techniques.
When: Tuesdays, July 8th, 15th, 29th and August 5th
Time: 7-10pm: 4 meetings
Where: Doug Gifford Photography
28142 Casitas Court, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
Fee: $300 (limited to 10 people)
· “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People” Field Trip
When: Sunday, August 10th, 6 – 8pm
Where: Divers Cove, Laguna Beach (Myrtle and Cliff Drive)
Fee: $45 (Limited to 10 people)
· Create Your Own Class
Put together a group of, at least, 6 friends and create your own class.
Topics that could be covered: Portraiture - location, in the studio; Wedding Boot Camp; Fine art; Travel; Scenic; Editorial – entertainment, sports (auto and yacht racing); Commercial – executive portraiture, product, architecture.
When: TBA
Where: TBA
Fee: TBA
Remember that we are also available for private lessons and coaching.
o $150 / hour
Go to DGP Blog for future announcements about other classes and workshops.
Heart of America – Regional Print Competition
Two years ago, I was asked to speak and judge at the Heart of America Conference in Omaha, Nebraska and I found out how great the steaks are in that part of the country. So when they asked me back this year to judge the Regional print competition, with the conference being held across the river in Council Bluffs, Iowa on April 11 – 13th, I couldn’t wait to get back there to have another great steak.
On my way there, I got to spend “just” a couple of more hours then I wanted to in the Dallas airport because I was caught up in the American Airlines DC grounding. Once I got to Omaha, I was met with of all things - snow. For me, this was fun to see and go out and play in, but for my Midwest friends, they were frustrated with it. Fortunately, it stopped snowing before I had to head home.
As I have talked about before, what is so great about judging these regional print competitions is that I get to see, and be inspired, by hundreds of images from a different part of the country from where I live. And, I also get to talk and meet a lot of great photographers from that part of the country and see what ideas they may have that are different from my area.
Grand Prix of Long Beach
Since 1983, I have been apart of the staff at the Grand Prix of Long Beach (GPLB). This year’s GPLB was very historic because it was the last year that the Champ Car series would ever race anywhere. It was a chance to look back at the 25 years of history with CART or what then became the Champ Car series on the streets of Long Beach. Several of the old drivers came back, as did several of the old cars. As usual, it was a fun weekend and all the races turned out to be good ones.
Several weeks before the race, I talked to the GPLB PR director about an idea I had to photograph all the drivers together that would be a part of that last race. After coordinating it with the Champ Car PR director, we were able to get all the drivers together just before the Saturday morning warm-up session in the winner’s circle. I think the drivers really enjoyed getting together and the photograph turned out great. The next day, after my friend and fellow photographer, Tim Mathiesen, had made a print of the image, we were able to get most all of the drivers to sign it. We have since scanned the print and have made up a limited edition poster of that image with the signatures. If any one would like a copy of that poster, please let me know.
AMA Superbike Challenge at the Auto Club Speedway, FontanaFor 28 years, I have photographed every type of motor sports vehicle, except the big road course motorcycles, known as the Superbikes. I finally got my chance to do that the third weekend of April this year as the guest of one of the Supersport division teams, Safety First Racing. It was great to have friends on the inside that I could talk to about all the details of this type of racing. By the end of the weekend, I felt very knowledgeable about the bikes and I was finally able to refer to the person on the bike as “rider,” rather then “driver” - a little thing that is a big thing, in this type of motor sports.
Even after watching them for several years on TV, in person, I couldn’t believe how far they tipped over the bikes as they went through the corners dragging their knee, and sometimes elbows, on the ground to help them keep the bikes under control. It was amazing! The still image, as it does most of the time, really allows you to see and appreciate this technique even better then you can on TV.
When I am photographing race cars we are tipping the camera to one side or the other to create movement. With the bikes, there is no need to do that because of their tipping over in the corners. But, you have to remember to bring a longer lens to fill the frame with the bike because they have such a large runoff area and they are much smaller than a car of any type.
The Friends of Dorothy
As a part of my ongoing desire to give back to my community I volunteered my services to photograph the “Haute for Spring” event at Bloomingdales, South Coast Plaza, May 7th, for “The Friends of Dorothy” support guild of Aids Services Foundation which raises funds for the ASF of Orange County. In its first year, the guild reached its goal to raise over a $100,000.
