Photo Shoot 7, April 2010

In April, my cousin Lindsay asked me to do a shoot of her for a Food Network competition she was entering. It was the first time I had picked up my camera in about 6 months which is still really shocking to me... my biggest excuse is my full-time job, which requires loads of energy. After some reflection, and especially witnessing Lindsay's determination to do what she loves, I can't wait to gain my good energy back to be able to do what I love.

I think the picture to the left is the picture she submitted with her application early this month. I dolled it up a bit by boosting the color and increasing the contrast. Here's what I learned from the shoot.

*Teaching school has helped me become a more efficient time manager. Before we began, I told her that I only wanted to spend about an hour on the entire shoot. With a time limit set and keeping in mind the client's tendency to grow weary after the first hour, I felt I was more efficient--I got great results in only a short period of time.

*When we were leaving the house, I advised Lindsay to bring about 4-6 different top possibilities, including a few with collars. This worked out great. I learned how the smallest changes in hairstyle, top, and background can radically change the mood of a photo.

Here are just a few of my favorites. Of course, everyone has theirs, but since this is my blog, I'm allowed to be partial! I had some fun with the iPhoto editing machine, adding color here, blurring edges there, and even cropping to see how zooming in would change the overall look. I hope you enjoy these. (Click on photo once to enlarge.)