LOC: Various places in Italy
DATE: June 9 – July 3, 2008

I went to Italy. I got a passport and everything. I’ve been waiting to put these shots up because I had hoped to add interesting comments about what each shot contained. But it’s been about a month now and it’s time to just get it done.

The more I think about it, the more appropriate it is that these shots are just as they are. I didn’t go to Italy to take pictures (don’t get me wrong, I was excited to bring my camera along). The main focus of my trip was to minister to high school kids of men and women in the armed forces. We did get to travel a bit afterward, but the traveling was really just an afterthought to the work we did on the military base. The shots I took were just that; kind of afterthoughts. Just a way to document the time I spent there.

To be honest, there wasn’t a ton of thought put into the shots I took. Whatever mood I was in, that’s the lens I reached for. In fast moving Rome or Florence, you’ll find a lot of wide angles and blurred motion. Compare that to a relaxing day at the vineyard in Tuscany: you’ll see most of the shots taken with my 35mm with a softer focus and composition.

It was really pretty liberating now that I think about it.

Hope you enjoy them!

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 10-22 F/3.5-4.5; Canon EF 35mm F/1.4; Canon EF-S 17-55mm F/2.8

LOC: Friendswood & Galveston, TX
DATE: April 2008

Short entry here. The title really says it all. The gals from this group were both taken in Galveston but I think each possesses a very different feel. Tyler, the lone male here, was shot around his house in Friendswood. I wish I could say that all of the laughter and smiles from his shoot were brought on by my witty banter and jokes, but rather he was laughing at his younger brother and neighborhood friends who were poking fun at his having to be a model.

All were good sports and very easy to shoot. How did I get so lucky to have these good looking kids as clients? Honestly, there must be something in the water around here.

Enjoy!

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 10-22 F/3.5-4.5; Canon EF 35mm F/1.4L; Canon EF 135mm F/2.0L

LOC: Friendswood, Texas
DATE: April 16, 2008

Every year the Friendswood High School Theatre Department puts on 7–10 different shows (probably more than any other public school in Texas). Being an alumna of FHS Drama, I remember all too well the excitement of the Spring: the last show of the year — U.I.L. One Act Play.

I probably don’t realize the full effect being involved in FHS Drama had on my life. A few things certainly stand out:

• I met my husband through theatre (that’s a biggie).
• I learned not only how to fake being comfortable speaking in public, but also to actually enjoy it.
• I learned the importance of being on time (I learned a great many things from my parents; how to be on time, however, is not one of them).

But I seem to find myself realizing more and more just how instrumental this theatrical training was, and still is, in my life as an adult. Most recently, and I’m surprised I hadn’t put this together before, I realized that theatre trained my eye for photography.

Enough about me, back to FHS Theatre. Kathy Powdrell, the department’s Director, has advanced to the U.I.L. State Meet 11 times, placing 7 of those 11 times, 3 of which were 1st place. She’s headed back again this year with a fantastic cast and crew. I had the privilege of covering a rehearsal for this year’s One Act Play a couple of nights ago, and it was such a treat! I enjoyed seeing Kathy, or as we lovingly called her in high school, “The Italian Dragon,” (Dragon Lady, Katnok, and Pod were also acceptable monikers) at work with her students. It brought back great memories and an even greater appreciation for the gift theatre has been to me.

I have posted just this one shot from that night’s rehearsal due to U.I.L restrictions. If you want to see more of The Canterbury Tales, go see them take state next weekend in Austin!

Thanks, Kathy, and break a leg!

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 10-22mm F/3.5-4.5; Canon EF 35mm F/1.4L

LOC: Galveston, TX
DATE: April 13, 2008

Since I started doing photography I’ve been looking forward to my younger sister’s class to graduate so I could, hopefully, take their senior portraits. They’re a really fun group of gals who have a funky sense of style and are really unique. Kelsey is one of those gals and I was thrilled when she asked me to do her portraits!

We headed down to Galveston, a welcome change from ‘the park’ scene. It inspired me to bring along my wide angle lens which I had been neglecting for a while. Eight out of 10 senior portrait shoots I do are for ladies, and they’re not really keen on all the distortion a 10mm focal length might bring.

I told Kelsey what I was wanting to do with it and what she could expect, and she was all for it (I knew I liked her!). Kelsey had a very flexible attitude, very few outfit changes and perhaps the most important factor — very little make-up! It makes a huge difference for me when I know I don’t have to worry about clumpy mascara in photoshop, and I’d much rather deal with getting rid of a pimple or two than deal with matching the skin tone of someone’s neck to the make-up on their face!

This photo shoot really got me geared up for all of the upcoming senior portraits I’ll be doing over the next few weeks. Click on the shot above (a little ‘behind the scenes’ shot ended up being one of my favs) and check out a sampling from the rest of Kelsey’s shoot.

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 10-22mm F/3.5-4.5; Canon EF 35mm F/1.4L

LOC: Galveston, TX
DATE: March 8, 2008

You may remember a previous post about some bridal portraits I did in Galveston. Two weeks ago, I finally had the opportunity to shoot the same bride’s wedding. What fun!

The wedding, like the bridal shoot, was held at the Hotel Galvez in Galveston. The ceremony was at noon. The weather was sunny; the skies clear: perfect early Spring weather — unless you’re a photographer. Sunny skies at noon create some photographic challenges. But, it wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle…

Shots for the wedding were taken all over the hotel: from a room without windows, to a room full of windows, and outside. Luckily, I brought along fast lenses and a fast assistant (my husband). Overall, things went really well. Click on the image above to see a small sampling from the day.

Congratulations to the bride and groom! Blessing to you both!

CAMERAS: Canon 40D (x2); Canon Rebel XTi
LENSES: Canon EF-S 10-22mm F/3.5-4.5; Canon EF-S 17-55mm F/2.8; Canon EF 35mm F/1.4L; Canon EF 70-200mm F/4L; Canon 135mm F2.0/L

In August 2007, Acadian Imaging made a move away from traditional print labs into the world of fine art inkjet printing (though we still use labs for certain projects). This meant several things for our clients:

• Slightly longer turnaround time as each print was meticulously produced in a workflow not unlike traditional darkroom printing.
• Higher quality papers and inks resulting in better prints with greater archival quality.
• Ultimate control over the process — no need to worry about how a lab tech might try to “improve” our work.

Now, after about six months, we are ready to take the next step toward printing perfection. Previously, we offered our clients a wide range of paper choices in three different grades: Standard, Premium, and Fine Art. As of March 2008, we are phasing out the Standard and Premium papers.

Why?

Though many reasons exist, two major reasons come immediately to the fore.

First, the landscape of inkjet printing was changed back in October when Epson released a new paper called “Exhibition Fiber.” Developed by Epson over a number of years with the counsel and assistance of many old school pro photographers, Exhibition Fiber seeks to mimic traditional, air-dried F surface prints. Prior to Exhibition Fiber’s introduction last Fall, there were qualities in inkjet printing that still didn’t quite match their chemical counterparts. Now, however, Exhibition Fiber meets or exceeds the standards of quality of those old school photographic papers.

Here are the brief specs for Exhibition Fiber:

This is a thick, heavy, white, slightly glossy paper that produces beautiful results both in color and black and white.

The second major reason for moving away from lesser quality papers is our commitment to providing the best possible prints to our customers.

In addition to the Exhibition Fiber Paper, mentioned above, Acadian Imaging will continue to offer Velvet Fine Art as a less traditional paper option. This paper is a 100% cotton rag with a slightly rough surface, which gives prints a timeless quality. Here are the specs:

If you’d like more information about prints and pricing, please refer to the photo portion of our website, or contact us.

I’d like to draw your attention to some really excellent photo restoration work that we commissioned recently. Sarah is a gal that Natalie and I know from high school, but we just recently reconnected with her (through the magic of Facebook, church, and some other networks).

Sarah is a Photoshop goddess. A friend of ours needed some restoration done in a short amount of time. After running all over the Clear Lake area, she could find no one that could get it turned around in just a few short days. So, she turned to us. Unfortunately, I don’t really have the chops for this kind of work. So, we called Sarah.

In just a few hours she was back at our office with the PSD of this beautifully restored portrait. Natalie and I were both quite impressed.

My initial “wow” reaction was based on the repair of damage all around the edges, of course. However, what most impressed me was the cleaning up of the water stain that runs in a diagonal swath right across the subject’s face. Sarah was able to neutralize that issue. The resulting print that Natalie made was, in my book, stunning — one of my favorite items that I’ve seen roll off our printer. The client was equally pleased.

If you’re looking for some restoration work, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We’ll pass on Sarah’s contact info and credentials with a whole-hearted recommendation.

Thanks, Sarah!

LOC: Galveston, Texas
DATE: December 17, 2007

The bride from a wedding I’ll be shooting in March wanted to get her bridal portrait shoot off of her list of things to do. Having already found her dress many months in advance (very lucky!), she was ready in late December. We spent the morning in Galveston at the Hotel Galvez which will serve as the location for their ceremony and reception. Locations within the hotel grounds were practically endless, our only limitation was time (my client had to be back for work soon after noon) and a very harsh midday sun. Everything from the front lawn to the hotel elevator held potential for a great shot (even the ladies’ room!). I only wish it had been a little more overcast for our outdoor shots.

Most of these images were captured using natural light with some reflected light. Though, for our last shots (in and around the aforementioned ladies’ room) I pulled out my AB 800 and soft box for a more stylistic look.

Overall, I was very pleased with the results and look forward to the wedding at this outstanding location!

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF 35mm f/1.4 L; Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8

LOC: Houston, Texas
DATE: December 2007

Starting in early November and lasting well through late December, I had a steady stream of family and sibling portrait inquiries (mainly for Christmas cards and holiday gifts for friends and family). I also had a group of high school gals get together to take a group shot for their Bible Study leader’s Christmas gift — how cute! Here are some of my favorites. Thanks to the families for allowing their use here!

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8; Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L

LOC: Austin, Texas
DATE: November 18, 2007

Down by the water we sat and talked for hours. Laughing and sipping our coffee and tea.

Feeling blessed to have such great friends.

Families and friends scurried about. New groups of people coming and going. Laughing and talking.

What a great afternoon in Austin, Texas.

CAMERA: Canon 40D
LENSES: Canon EF-S 17-55mm F/2.8; Canon EF 85mm F/1.8