Cold, Grey, Rockin’ Kinda Day
Sometimes you just have to suck it up and make the best of a situation. That’s exactly what everyone did yesterday with the cold, grey skies and absolutely no one in the bar for a band to play to. Oh, and for me to photograph them with. This band brings in a crowd wherever they go, no doubt. That wasn’t the issue. The challenge was that they were playing on a Saturday afternoon from 1:00pm – 4:00pm at a “biker bar”. I have no idea if that’s offensive in any way, so I’ll apologize in advance if it is, but hey, that’s what we all call those kind of places. ;-) Bars where bikers go to! You know – nice day, need a place to ride the motorcycle to and have some fun hanging out with other people with motorcycles – that kind of bar. The only problem was that yesterday really wasn’t a nice day and it was down right cold! It’s April. This time last year we were all running around in shorts and sandals. Instead, the area got snow just two days ago.
Ok, ok, I’ll stop talking about the horrible weather. My point is that there wasn’t anyone in the bar. No one. At all. So…. well…. they made the best of it! The performed and I photographed them. I understand later there were maybe 12 people or so. At least those folks got a chance to enjoy some great music that afternoon! I was there to capture some “live” shots for their website and promotional materials. It’s the same band from my last post. Here’s a few from the day and two from the final package of images from before…. Oh! And don’t forget to check out NOWisNOW if you’re in the New England area! :-)
Bring on summer!!!
Band Promo Shots… Pick A Favorite!
Last weekend I had the pleasure of photographing the guys in a great band called NOWisNOW from Portland, Maine. We were in the downtown area on a super sunny, super cold Sunday morning. It provided some interesting challenges… the sun was SO bright that we couldn’t really capture much outside. I mean, blindingly bright!!! So, we gained access to an old government building thanks to a great business owner on the street level and made our way to the elevator where we knew there were cool dials above the entrances to the elevators. We wanted to keep in theme with the name of the band.
The photographs below are all processed differently to show the different options to the band. Without saying much more about the band, I wanted to share some of the proofs and find you what these images say to you… what does it resonate about their personalities and the style of music? What would you expect in a performance from them? I’m curious to hear your thoughts!
Winter Wonderland!
In New England we’ve reached that point in the year where many of us begin to get rather sick of snow and we’re ready for spring. March arrives this coming week and I’d like to think we’re making the turn, but we all know there will inevitably be more snow. The weather has been a bit irregular with rain last night and a shift toward snow today. The snowfall was gorgeous with HUGE flakes and covered trees. While it wasn’t exactly fun to get off my driveway, I did enjoy snapping a few photos afterward.
Here are two photographs. One is of the simple yet beautiful trees. It’s gorgeous to look at them in their white splendor while it lasts… as soon as the wind picks up or the temperatures rise, it’ll all be a distant memory. The second photograph is of the North Church in my town’s city center square area. I’ve photographed it a million times (or thereabouts!) and this time it caught my eye during the magical hour as the sun was going down, even though it was behind the snow clouds. The snow-lined trees and streets add a gorgeous accent to the church. I hope everyone was able to live in the moment and enjoy the beauty before they tried to clear their driveways!
Sharpen The Saw
Many of you have heard the phrase “sharpen the saw” relative to your skills or talents. It’s the 7th “habit” on Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I believe strongly in those “habits” and I feel there’s some merit to them. You can apply them in all areas of your life. I enjoy learning new techniques or getting tips and tricks in photography workshops. I especially like when I’m in a hands-on environment where you can apply your learnings.
This weekend I had the opportunity to participate in an informal workshop that was organized by one of the photo clubs I belong to. One member graciously hosted and we had a full studio set up with all of his gear and a great model. We experimented with the various phases of lights… one… two… three plus a hair light plus a reflector. There were about ten participants, all with varying levels of knowledge and experience. I found it to be fun in both participant and teacher mode at the same time. It’s interesting how you can find yourself brushing off your own cobwebs when you’re trying to explain the basics about a certain piece of gear, settings or type of shot. I actually didn’t take many photographs, which is nearly unheard of for me! ;-) I was helping others and enjoyed it. Here’s one of our model Rachel, who was great with everyone!
I encourage everyone – get out and sharpen your saws! :-)
The Day After…
Wow, did we have a serious snow storm here in New England! Actually, it was officially a blizzard. The snow was really falling and the wind was howling. At one point, they even said we had hurricane force winds along the coast. At my house, I got somewhere between 2 1/2 and 3 feet of snow in ONE NIGHT. Yes, one night. I’m sure most everyone in the US has heard about it on the news. Thankfully I didn’t lose power, but I sure did have a mess of snow to clear out of my driveway when it finally ended. That’s one way to get your weekend workout!
Then, there’s the day after. The day we all get to go play and have fun it it! Many are out skiing in the mountains nearby. The kids are sledding (we didn’t have any snow on the ground before the storm) and others are out cross country skiing. I decided to make my way to a local park and try out my snow shoes. I had bought them two years ago when we had a ton of snow (literally, a ton) but didn’t get many opportunities to try them out. Today I grabbed them and headed toward a park right on the ocean about 2 or 3 miles from my house. Of course, I had my camera with me (which I dropped when I got home and shattered a filter on my lens… but that’s a story for another day 
). While there wasn’t as much snow right on the water due to the storm surge, there’s still a lot. You get the idea from the photos below. Some have a fanciful look and others are clear and almost harsh, all managed by clarity and contrast. You can click on them to view a larger image. Enjoy… and stay warm!
