This has been a great month so far for the National Breast Cancer Foundation (of which I’m the C.O.O). As you probably know, October is breast cancer awareness month.  The NASCAR community has been very supportive of our cause this October.  I’m going to post a batch of photos from Talladega Super Speedway this week.  They painted their logo on their infield and included us in their all their festivities.  This set of images is from the festivities at Charlotte Motor Speedway this past weekend.  There were three teams that raced in support of NBCF.  Danica Patrick and the Go Daddy team fielded a pink car as did Reynolds Wrap and our good friends at Randy Hill Racing.  Here are some of my photos from the day of hanging out in the garages, pits, and everywhere in between.  A big thanks to everyone who supported NBCF this weekend!

I just recently had the great fortune of visiting Claude Monet’s very famous home and garden in Giverny, France. Considered the father of impressionistic painting, Monet actually retired in this estate and started a school for younger artists eager to learn from the master.  Several of Monet’s greatest pieces were his attempt to capture the beauty of these grounds.

So when we went to Giverny (by a short train ride from Paris), I had a very simple goal of capturing at least one image that I could then treat in Photoshop to appear as a painting that Monet would have painted. And, I was determined to have a piece that could be printed on canvas and hung up in our new office expansion.   I’ve used a great app before called Snap Art that converts photos to “paintings” of various types.  It’s easy to dial in brush sizes, canvas types, etc. to acquire the style of “painting” you’d like.  I thought I’d show you the steps I took to complete the piece.

I took several images around the grounds, but I settled on this image of his Japanese foot bridge and water lily pond.  There are many famous paintings of this little scene. Here’s the original image I selected:

As you can see there are quite a few problems. Namely, the gawking tourists weren’t originally present in Monet’s garden. I can’t imagine Claude would have been copacetic with that.  Also, the overall picture is washed out and pretty bland. So, I started out by taking it into Photoshop and removing the unwanted guests.  This was where the bulk of my time went.  Mostly, I used the clone stamp tool and sampled the vegetation around the guest to fill in what was presumably behind them.  I knew that I didn’t have to be perfect with it, because the final product would be an impressionist painting and that would cover some of the smaller detail shortcuts I was planning to take.  When you’re using the clone stamp, the biggest issue you have is repetitive patterns.  it’s important to keep re-sampling areas and to be very erratic about it.  Nature is erratic and doesn’t use a clone stamp.

When I rid myself of the tourists, then it was time to do some image enhancement.  I added some contrast, and vibrancy (in Lightroom) and worked with the highlights and shadows to get them into a good, balanced image. When I finished with that, I looked back and realized that the photo needed just a tiny hint of color on the water lilies so I cloned one of the colorful water lilies and placed it on several different lily pads.  I knew that the broad brush strokes would just barely pick up the color when it was converted so I didn’t have to get it perfect, but close.  Here’s what the completed photo looked like, ready for the painting conversion….

Then it was time to take it to Snap Art.  I selected a default called Impasto – Abstract Impressionist.  At that point, it was just a matter of playing with the brush details and color till I dialed in something that was close to what he would have painted, but with my own style.  Here’s the final image, ready to be framed and hung on the wall.  Thank you, Mr. Monet, for the indelible mark you left on the world.

I had the pleasure of photographing a very special young lady last weekend named Alex Baker.  Remember that name, ’cause she’s going to be famous one day. Alex is an aspiring actress and and a talented singer and musician.  Here’s a sampler from her senior portrait session.

My brother in law has been in China for a few months.  His girlfriend Samantha encouraged him to let his beard go buck wild while there, so it has blossomed into this glorious nest of manliness.  I took Caleb out into the front yard and shot a quick portrait.  One assistant is holding a white diffuser behind his head and the sun is directly behind him shining through.  Then I have one 580exII high and right to sweep light down across his face, and finally there’s a reflector low and left to kick some sunlight and flash back onto the beard.  Then I put in some contrast, sharpening, and color treatment in Photoshop.

Behold “Big Red”, as the Chinese called him.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from my recent trip to Paris, Switzerland and Italy.

I was in DC this week on business and had some time to take photos of some of the city’s marvelous sites.  When I’m in DC, I always go and spend time at the monuments, just soaking in the history.  Always makes me proud to be an American.

This was an exciting weekend for me, because I crossed a finish line, of sorts. In the fall of 2009, I wrote down the following photography goal:

Create a comprehensive photography website with the following:
1) Blog
2) Client proofing section
3) Portfolio

As of the weekend, I’ve accomplished my goal. A while back I bought a ProPhoto blog and installed this as my main website at kevinhail.com. That’s the landing site you are on right now. A year ago I purchased a SmugMug Pro account for my client proofing/printing service, and I love it. The missing piece for months has been a solid portfolio site. I’ve researched for awhile and there were several critical needs that arose to the surface like:

• Easily customizable, WordPress back-end
• iPhone/iPad friendly, non-flash presentation
• Seamless integration with existing kevinhail.com blog

When time came to really make this happen, I found a site fairly easily, but it was the work of customizing it and integrating into my existing site that required a bit of thought and effort.  I’m telling you all this, because for all of you photographers out there who are overwhelmed by inadequacy when you look at other photographers’ websites in comparison to yours, I want you to know that you can put together a comprehensive site with all of this for under $350.  A portfolio, client proofing/ordering solution, and blog are all vital components for any working photographer.  I remember realizing this about a year and a half ago, but no one that I talked to had any solid advice on how to make all the puzzle pieces fit together.  Well, if you’re in this same spot, just ask me.  I’ll help.  There’s nothing worse than not having someone to ask for help.

When putting together a portfolio, here is some of the advice that I’ve implemented from others, including photography instructor Zack Arias, who frequently does online portfolio reviews:

• Put forth your best work, only your best. Best first.  People may not go more than 3 or 4 photos deep and they will have already made a judgement about you as a photographer.
• Target no more than 15-20 images per gallery.  You should never have more than one photo from a photoshoot in the same portfolio gallery.  It makes it look like you don’t shoot very often.
• Showcase the kind of photography you’d like to keep getting hired for. I am a portrait photographer, so I lead out with my portrait photography. That is my first gallery, and one of only two galleries total.
• Make the navigation simple and intuitive. If people can’t quickly jump to other pics or see thumbnails, they will get frustrated and may leave your site.
• No music!  This is kind of a bummer ’cause music and photography go hand in hand, but someone may have their speakers cranked, or they absolutely hate the song/genre you selected and that will reflect on their opinion of your music. I’ve heard so many professional photographers and editors complain about hearing music when they’re reviewing photographers’ sites. Note: You may want to make a slideshow with music for your client. Make sure you know what kind of music they like.  But for the general population, just let your work speak for itself.
• Brand consistency.  If the colors on your blog are green and yellow, your portfolio should reflect that.  People shouldn’t feel like they’re on two separate sites, just because they are.
• Keep it clean!  So help me, if you have a Google ad on your portfolio site, I’m going to smash your server with a bat.  People are walking through the Louvre, except it’s just your work hanging on the walls.  Don’t clutter that up with anything that will distract them.

So feel free to go check out my new portfolio and tell me if I took my own advice.  If not, feel free to rip on me in the comments section!  Click on the “Portfolio” button at the top of this page to check it out.

I believe that when my son grows up to become the photographer that I aspire to be,  we will both look back at this photo I took of him in the park the other day and we’ll laugh.  He is awkwardly holding the camera in his little hands and one of his fingers is even blocking the lens as he’s taking a picture of his daddy, who is taking a picture of him.  My laughter won’t be a mocking laughter, though.  I’ll be pondering the innocence of children and the innocence of “taking pictures” and my inner smile will turn to laughter. My son Colin is 3 years old.  He is part scientist, part wrestler, all boy, and a true work of art.  He has grown up with a camera in his face, flashes firing in his eyes from inches away, and a dad constantly hollering at him to “look at the camera!”  After all these years of seeing me, with cameras and lights, taking pictures of the world around us, it’s finally dawned on him that a camera is not just another device with cool buttons that he can push, it’s actually a way of connecting with the world around us.

In the last few months, I’ve seen this awareness turn on like a light bulb.  He’ll say, “dad, that’s a cool picture”, as he’s looking at a sky with bright white clouds, or a sunset with rich colors.  Colin chases our dog around the house taking blurry photos of paws, books, carpet, etc.   The connection is slowly being made from his head to his heart that a picture is a way to preserve a moment in time and create a memory.  When gold is being smelt from the ore that it’s housed in, the chunk of ore is taken through a rigorous process to draw out what is valuable, the gold, from what is not valuable.  In it’s purest form, the “gold” of photography, is the joy of taking pictures.  Children are closer to what is precious about photography: they are not self-conscious about their pictures compared to others’ pictures, they aren’t obsessed with bigger and better gear, and they certainly don’t wrestle with the feeling that they must chronically self-promote to stand out.  They just love pushing the button and looking at what they captured.

As photographers, do we ever just sit back and look at our pictures and enjoy them?  I know I don’t do that often enough.  I’m always obsessed with criticizing my own work. And even that word “work” is so self-important, isn’t it?  It’s like we feel that we have to add gravitas to our pictures by calling it our “work”.  Hey, I do it too!  I spend hours looking back at early pictures I took, ripping my self to shreds…if only I’d framed that differently…. look at that horrible HDR, what was I thinking?…if only I’d had a better lens when I shot that. No doubt that self-evaluation is what makes us better, but it can bit-by-bit  steal away the “gold” of photography.  Are we having fun?  Are we feeding that child inside of all us, who longs to capture a moment that captures our imagination, and to proudly hold the camera up and say, “dad, look at my picture”?

Everything in life is subject to competition.  Photography is highly competitive.  Many of my fellow photographers are competing with other photographers for actual food on the table.  I feel for them.  I truly do.  How difficult it must be to be magnanimous and gracious to other photographers who are competing for the clothes off your childrens’ backs.  I believe that with anything in life, though, the world favors those who favor others and those who pursue their imagination.  How do you define success as a photographer?  Is it the money you make?  The awards and recognitions you rack up?  I don’t judge anyone for their personal criteria for defining photography success, but I do believe that most of our definition of success in photography is inversely proportional to the fun we’re having.  If you’re a full-time photographer, are you carving out enough personal time for projects that inspire you?  For all of us, are we printing our images out and hanging them on the wall so we can enjoy the fruits of our labor?

I want to be more like Colin, grab whatever camera I can get my hands on and take a picture when I see something that interests me. If my big fat finger is in the way, so be it.  To respond to what is in front of me, whatever nature presents, or whatever captures my imagination.  For you beginning photographers, don’t take this as a charge to not spend your time learning and striving to be better, just don’t lose your love for taking a picture, as you become more and more technically proficient.  Be like Colin…as God speaks to you through his wonderful creation, tell him you’re listening and that you appreciate what he’s given you enough to capture that moment in time and show others.  Never lose sight of the gold…take pictures that inspire you and enjoy the moments you’ve captured along the way.

You really want to become a photographer.  Always have.  But you’ve heard that photography gear is horribly expensive. Well, it is!  I have to admit, this post is horribly selfish.  You see, I’m writing it for the Kevin from 3 years ago.  I want that Kevin to know what he should buy.  It’s quite easy to spend money chasing rabbit trails.  I’ve done a lot of chasing and I’d like “Back-To-The-Future Kevin” to know what the most efficient use of his precious dollars should be spent on, in the search to acquire the necessary gear to become a professional photographer.

I’ve captured in one place the items I consider essential for starting a photography business that can deliver for its’ clients.  A pro, by definition, is one that can charge for his or her services….and people will actually buy those services (an important qualifier).  I’m sure I have left some items off this list and you may disagree with some of my selections, but this is a pretty tight list that will help get you started. At the bottom of this list I’ll explain why I selected these items. One important note: I’m going to assume you have a computer.  If you don’t, you’ll need one and you’ll need to backup your images on a separate drive.  I didn’t include either here, but you’ll need a computer and backup.  Also, I’ve listed the most recent price.  These can change at any point, so the listed prices should be considered a ballpark.  Here we go…

1) Canon EOS Rebel T2i - ($800) For bang-for-the-buck, this is a fantastic camera.  I have chosen to take the Canon path on the old Canon vs. Nikon argument.  Really, both camera brands are great.  Just take one and stick with it.  They’re both going to be around for awhile.  I would start with this camera body, because it can get you in the door of SLR photography.  18MP of resolution and it shoots in HD Video.  Very nice.  I now shoot the Canon 5DmkII, because I favor the full-frame sensor, but I would have no shame using this body.  If you opt to buy the kit with the existing 18-55mm lens, you might as well toss that in the trash. That lens is crap.

2) Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM – ($1,100) If you don’t know, you’re about to find out that lenses are expensive! For instance, this lens costs more than the camera.  Don’t worry about why, just accept that fact.  So what lens should you get in the beginning?  I believe that this is the best beginner professional (L lens) because it let’s you shoot fairly wide (24mm) and allows you to shoot at good portraiture length (105mm).  It also, has Image Stabilization (IS), which is nice.  I wish it was a 2.8 aperture, but the IS really helps you to shoot at a lower shutter speed and make up some of the difference in low light conditions.  It’s a great walk-around lens and one that I trust.

3) Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II – ($120) Do you ever see that person in a photo who has a razor sharp eye, but everything else behind them and in front of them is blurry (in a good way)?  That fall-off of sharpness is called bokeh.  The lower the aperture, 1.8 in this case, the shallower the Depth of Field (DOF) exists and the more likely you are to have a nice bokeh. Usually, it costs a lot to get low aperture, but for some reason it’s easier to manufacture a lens in 50mm that has the low aperture and that doesn’t cost that much.  This lens is a no-brainer at right around $120.  You will love experimenting with it, and the fact that it’s a “prime” (fixed length lens) will cause you to use your legs as a zoom.  Meaning, you will have to keep moving.  A key to becoming a better photographer.

4) Canon LP-E8 Battery Pack – ($40) Some of these smaller ticket items, I’ve included because I want you to realize the importance of preparation.  Always have a backup battery with you.  Always.  You can have everything set up on a photoshoot: lighting, model, hair and makeup, and your camera is dead?!?  That’s just unacceptable, but it happens to amateurs more than you’d think.  Pros have done it, too, when they were amateurs.  It’s just that the humiliation was so great, they vowed to never do it again, so they bought about 50 extra batteries and spread them all over their house, car, and backyard.

5) 16GB SD Memory Card (x2) – ($30×2=$60) 16MB should give you more memory than you need on a given photoshoot. But again, have a backup!

6) Lexar Memory Card Reader – ($30) Just leave it hooked up to your computer.  This makes it easy to pop the card out after a shoot and plug it right in.

7) Canon 580EX II Flash – ($450) Lighting.  So many things to say here, but I’ll be brief.  You HAVE to have a strobe if you want to charge people for portraits. If you rely on the sun being in the perfect position, you’re going to be rescheduling a lot of photoshoots.  I recommend getting this strobe over the 430EX II, because you want to have as much power as possible to give you as many options when you’re out in the field. It’s worth the extra $200, trust me.

8 ) Flash Zebra E-TTL Cord (24 Ft.) – ($60) Canon’s E-TTL system is a language that your camera and your flash use to get the right amount of lighting without you having to set it manually.  Nikon has the i-TTL system. Same thing.  This cord allows you to place your flash out of the way and obscure it behind something and still send the E-TTL signal back to your camera so you can control it. This way, you can dial in exposure compensation if you need to make adjustments.  You’ll be hearing about “Pocket Wizards” and “Radio Poppers”, both are brands of radio-controlled remote E-TTL triggers.  For now, just know that they’re expensive and you don’t have to have them.

9) Lowepro Flipside 400 AW Backpack – ($150) You have all this awesome camera gear, but it’s just laying around randomly in your closet.  Unacceptable.  I’ve had photoshoots break down because I couldn’t find one little part for a bracket on a stand, and that changed my entire lighting configuration.  Buy a good bag to secure your camera, lenses, flashes, etc.  This is a good starter bag.  It allows you to get out on the street and shoot portably.

10) Lastolite 33-Inch TriFlip Kit – ($130) Most often all you’ll need for lighting is to redirect a bit of sunlight with a reflector or to just diffuse the direct sunlight.  I love Lastolite Tri-Grips for this purpose.  It’s design allows you to hold it up yourself and continue shooting with the other hand. This kit enable your tri-grip to be a reflector, diffuser, or flag.  You’ll love it.

11) Manfrotto 055XPROB Pro Tripod Legs – ($150) If you want to shoot anything without flash or below about 1/250 of a second, it’s a good idea to shoot on a tripod to get that extra bit of sharpness.  Cheap tripods can collapse and destroy your nice camera and lens.  Don’t cheap out on this. Manfrotto is the benchmark in the industry.  This particular item is called the Tripod Legs.  Their are tripod legs and tripod heads.  You can get various legs and heads. But, you’ll need both.

12) Manfrotto 498RC2 Ball Head with Quick Release – ($110) Nice tripod ball head.  The quick release is key. I won’t use a tripod without one.  You need to be able to quickly pop off your camera and free-hand it and then pop it back in.

13) Westcott 45in. Umbrella – Optical White Satin with Removable Black Cover – ($30) There are many different type of light modifiers.  The first one you need is an umbrella. They’re cheap and versatile.  A no-brainer.  With this size you can light up a group, if need be.  Move on to softboxes next.  But for now, this will get you by quite well.  An added bonus is that it can become a “shoot-through” white satin umbrella by simply removing the outer cover.  2 for 1.

14) Westcott 750 Light Stand – ($30) Light stands are pretty standard.  Westcott is a good brand.  This is solid.  You don’t have to spend a ton on these.

15) Light & Umbrella Shoe Mount Clamp – ($30) You have to get a pivoting shoe mount to go on your light stand and to seat your umbrella and small flash.

16) Lightroom – ($300) I know that people are going to say, what about Photoshop? Yes, you’ll want that eventually, BUT you can get by without it for now. Lightroom is essential, though. About 2 years ago, I tried out Lighroom and fell in love with it. It absolutely changed my workflow. Heck, it gave me a workflow.  I can now sort through, select, and process about 500 photos in an hour because of Lightroom. Try this 30 day trial and see what you think.  You’ll need it for being able to catalog, select, edit, and export your images.

17) SmugMug – ($150) Let’s say you have a bunch of photos from a shoot and you need to get them in front of your client to select.  This is called proofing.  SmugMug is an online service that allows you to upload your images and give your clients a way to select their favorites.  After the selection, and your subsequent edits, you can then upload the final images and your clients can order prints.  You won’t have to have anything to do with the process.  This “fulfillment” process is automated.  It’s amazing.  You just sit back and collect checks.  SmugMug is a great website for this necessary step in the photographer-client process.  Note: Most photographers prefer proofing and ordering prints face-to-face with their clients. SmugMug works for me, because I don’t have time for that.  But if I were putting food on the table with my photography, I would do face-to-face.

18) ProPhoto Blog – ($200) Every photographer needs a website.  Many of the photographers I know use this WordPress template as their blog template.  Quite a few also use it as their portfolio.  I do.  It’s amazingly easy to customize and is made for photographers, so the image uploading and viewing functionality is perfect. I am so happy I bought this.

19) Moo Cards – ($30 for 50 cards) When you’re out and about and you mention that you’re a photographer, you’ll need to give people your information quickly.  Thus, you need a business card. However, these are not standard business cards.  Moo cards allows you to print your images in beautiful, full color on heavy stock paper.  They are cheap. You can print a new image on each card if you like, too. I’ve seen many photographers spread them out like comic books on a table and offer them as a sort of collectible.

So there you have it.  If you bought every item on this list, it would cost you $3,970.  The nature of this industry is incremental, though.  You buy something, save up for something, trade something. You’re not just going to buy everything at once, but this should give you a good starting point.  I will be updating this site as I remember the obvious things and as new items present themselves.  If you feel that I have left something off, or you have a suggestion, please leave me a note in the comments section.  Good luck and good shooting!

After several weeks of being couped up in our houses during the freakish Snowpocalypse of 2011, most of us Texans are pretty fired up about a weekend with 70 degree temps.  Personally, I’m dying to get out and photograph some things.  Anything!  Several of us who are part of the informal, yet highly cool, Dallas Photography Socials, will be getting together at 3pm in Deep Ellum to do a little photowalk.  Since there are so many great backgrounds and interesting alleys and such, it would be a lot of fun to do some speed portraits (I’m sure there’s a better name for it).  I’d like us to exchange tips on what we do for shooting portraits on the fly.  I’m going to bring some portable lighting gear, but I’d really like to keep it light & simple and focus on reflectors, diffusers, and maybe a small strobe flash.

I’ve recruited my wife, who does some modeling, to come along.  I’m about 90% sure she’ll be able to, but if anyone wants to come along and model for us, that would be great.  That person could walk away with a couple cool headshots, if not at least a new Facebook Profile pic!

We’re going to meet at the “Life in Deep Ellum” parking lot.  The address is below.  Please shoot me a note (kevin@kevinhail.com) if you’re coming so I can figure out how many will be there and whom to expect.  Feel free to bring a friend and lots of questions as we’ll have some answers. Open to anyone who wants to come and it’s FREE.

What: Speed Portrait Photo Walk

When: 3PM, Sunday, Feb. 13th, 2011

Where: Life in Deep Ellum parking lot – 2803 Taylor Street Dallas, Texas 75226

Who: Photographers (Beginners through Pros) & anyone who would like to model or just tag along

View Larger Map