The parties move around to a different restaurant each night during the Sedona Film Fest and last night it was Sounds Bites Grill playing hot with a great spread and music by Ralf Illenberger on guitar and Troy Perkins on his handmade bass. Just seeing the work Troy did on his bass guitar shows me he’s a pretty incredible carpenter! (missed the name of the drummer… sorry about that!)
Michele asked me to stop by to create some stock advertising images for future promotion of the restaurant showing how they take care of biz for group events. Here’s a few.
Chef kicking out the Bananas Foster
Capturing the crowd from behind the stage
Looking round from the regular direction, crowd to band photo.
A little slice of the stage with the Sound Bites logo lit on the wall.
Images were captured with the Lumix GH4 and a bit of on camera fill flash. Always try to not make the flash apparent by dragging the shutter (slow shutter speed) to allow the background to register with the ambient light and then a kiss of flash to freeze and fill the foreground.
While at the Virginia Professional Photographers Association Convention in Richmond I tended to have the Lumix FZ 1000 in hand. The more I use this the more it seems to want to become my second camera. It weighs just under 2 and a half pounds but has a huge zoom range. 25-400mm at f2.8-4.0. The optical stabilization is pretty darn amazing and it handles quite well. It’s not a pro camera but has a ton of pro features.
I like to have a camera with me almost all the time because you just never know what you want capture at a moments notice. Here is a hallway captured in two different ways at the same time using a preset and using the RAW plus jpeg setting.
Liked the lighting in the hallway with the father and son walking…
Caught this rendition of the hallway scene at the same time using a preset that I tweaked to black and white.
This lighting class with Jeff was shoot in a completely darkened room. Opened the RAW file and pulled up the shadow slider a bit and pulled down the highlights slider and was able to tame the contrast.
Word is ‘proper tool for the proper job’ and I find the Lumix FZ 1000 camera under at $895 MSRP and available on Amazon for $717 to be an amazing deal…
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – remember if you like the info being presented here using the links (like to Amazon) help support the web site with small affiliate fees.
When fellow photographers ask for a quick portrait even though lighting conditions are less that ideal and time is very short you take a crack at it. This is Kathleen and Marc who were kind enough to pick me up at the airport when I went to Richmond, Virginia to speak and judges images at the annual convention.
Kathleen and Marc Busch. Fellow photographers from Virginia after a little Photooshop photo.
RAW capture of Kathleen and Marc
As you can see even a quick photo grab can turn out quite nice. Never pass up the opportunity to capture a memory. Photo made with the Panasonic Lumix FZ 1000 a bridge camera. 25-400mm f2.8-4.0 4K Video. Not quite a pro body but has amazing features that take it way above an advanced amateur camera! Becoming one of the cameras I like to have with me all the time to cover my butt when I see something cool but can’t have the entire pro kit with me.
I’m here in Richmond, Virginia at the Four Points Sheraton for the Virginia Professional Photographers Association Annual Convention (VPPA). Thanks to Panasonic and the Lumix Mirrorless line of cameras for sponsoring me to be here. It looks to be a really great turnout. I’ll be speaking tonight (Friday) from 6-8PM and judging with a fine panel tomorrow. If you are in the area you might want to come on by to see my program called Photo-Synthesis on creating painterly artwork using your photographic images.
Lots of other great speakers for the next few days too.
Here’s my speaker badge. First time I’ve seen the new designation M.Artist. in my credentials. Way cool!
What an entertainer with solid stage presence. Marley Taylor really rocked the house at Sound Bites Grill last Friday night. She was there with her Marley Taylor Trio. Marley, originally from Pittsburgh, grew up singing professionally in Houston at age 12. In 1994 after spending a few years in Nashville, she was signed to Sony Publishing for a songwriting contract. She also appeared on The Nashville Network TV show series Riders In The Sky. After moving to Arizona a few years later, Marley became a staple in the Scottsdale/Phoenix music scene with the popular act Zowie Bowie. The group became a hit at Scottsdale’s premier nightclub, Barcelona, later signing with Station Casinos in Las Vegas for a lengthy contract.
Image from behind the stage at Sound Bites Grill with the Marley Taylor Trio
When prepping images for newspaper releases I will often make the conversion to black and white to get the best quality possible. Often the graphics people will just push the greyscale button which doesn’t give the best contrast for the image. I will also over-sharpen the image so that when printed on newsprint and the ink spreads the image will still appear sharp.
And of course the Marley Taylor Trio made it to the ‘Wall of Fame’
Images were captured with the Panasonic Lumix GH4 and the 35-100mm Lumix Vario f2.8 lens. With the density range this camera has there are less problems with capturing the LED lighting that is used exclusively on-stage.
I do a monthly radio show on KAZM Radio in Sedona, AZ. This episode of Tech Talk with Mike Tabback we talk about the convention Imaging USA in Nashville where I was fortunate enough to receive my Professional Photographers of America Master Artist Photography Degree and Imaging Excellence Award along with the American Society of Photographers Bronze Award…
In the second half of the show we chat about the Panasonic Lumix FZ 1000 and it’s 4K video capabilities. This camera has an amazing range and wonderful Imaging Optimization Stabilizer… (if you don’t want to hear about the awards part of the show pick up at around minute 13 for the Lumix camera conversation)
For infrared conversion of my cameras I use LifePixel. Infrared allows you to put an older camera to use and opens up a new time time of day for productive image creation.
Learn Photoshop in a fun environment. Aaron Nace applies the right amount of fun with easy to understand and follow tutorials. Actions and brushes are included with lessons!
Lightning, waterdroplets, sound, time-lapse, HDR sequences, smiles and much more control for your camera!
Cameras Get Smarter -
A High Speed Smart Camera Remote
Best embroidery ever. Give Queensboro a try, get a $20 instant credit to get started by clicking on the logo! They specialize in great quality custom logo apparel and promotional products with the best customer service.
Platypod has become a great resource for being creative in getting your camera gear easily into unusual places. As an Platypod Pro I get to work/play with the gear even before it comes out. Head over to Platypod, subscribe to the newsletter and you will get special discounts reserved only for subscribers.
