Blong's Personal Shoot
Blong recently contacted me about getting some portraits done and today was the day! He wanted an early shoot to avoid the hot weather (which was extremely smart of him since we've been hitting triple digits in Sac this week). I suggested shooting around downtown because of the nice urban scapes that are around - plus early Saturday morning means very little traffic and a lot of good parking!
Our first spot to shoot was Caesar Chavez Plaza. I got to know Blong a little there and found out he likes to shoot landscapes! So yeah! A fellow photog. Cool! I told him that I wanted to create some really unique looks for him and would be shooting pretty untraditional today. I ended up using my ultra wide 15mm lens for many of the shots we got in today's session. 15mm is not a focal length that is traditional for portraiture. But you know... breaking the rules is fun... and provides for unique photographs.
The reason a 15mm lens isn't used in portrait photography is the distortion it creates towards the edges of the frame. If you put a person there, their body will seem very out of proportion. So I had to be very careful in how I framed Blong in the photographs I took this morning. I tried to keep him (especially his head) as centered as possible. In the shot above you notice his arms are a bit larger, but I think in this perspective it makes sense.
I drive by this 'Love Sacramento' wall quite often. The 15mm allowed me to really get the entire thing in the frame, which was pretty sweet. Notice how clean the sidewalk is? That's not due to the amazing sanitation department here in Sacramento... it's all thanks to Photoshop! I really wanted Blong to be up in front of a beautiful background. The sidewalks here are filled with nasty stains and garbage so I had to clean it up. Good thing I could do so digitally.
In discussing what we wanted to go for, the urban theme came up quite a bit. For girls and women, I like going to a beautiful park to highlight the beauty of both subjects. For a guy's shoot, I wanted something a little more edgy and sharp.
Blong was a pleasure to work with today and I think we came out with some spectacular shots today. If you're looking to get some unique portraiture done, let me know! We'll create something really awesome together!