Svenja

My beauty day started off a little rocky.  My hairstylist left one of the key elements to make the shot I'd tested for all evening the day before.  I was a bit upset at first but had to adjust my attitude and get a great shoot.  I took 10 min. to clear my head and remembered that everything works out the way it is meant to be.  

I had an amazing model from NYC and once we started talking found out we had common friends in NYC and Europe.  One of my old friends in Denmark is good friends with her.  Small world!

Svenia is an extraordinary model!  Our shoot was incredible and we ended up getting five amazing shots from the day.  I've just finished selecting my finals and they are at this moment uploading to my retoucher.  As soon as they are finished I will share the results here.  Now it's on to casting for the next model.  This story is a two part beauty/hair story.  Svenja was my blond and now I'm casting to find the right model with darker hair.  We will shoot next week to finish the story and again I will share it all here.  At the end of the day it all worked out better than if I'd tried to shoot my first shot.  Now we have a strong plan and you will get to see the results soon.

Quick note:  It seems so many photographer are slow these days, but use this time to create new images that you love and put them out there.  This slow period will soon be a thing of the past, even though it seems like its been forever already.   Be smart and shoot what you love!

Always Dream Big,

Matthew Jordan Smith

Beauty Test Day

I have been shooting for 21 years now, but this morning I could not sleep in anticipation of my beauty shoot today.  I spent a good part of the evening testing my light but did not have a subject to work with.  I begged one of my neighbors, who was on her way to a party, to come by for a brief moment so I could test my lighting on her.  I am very thankful for that because without a subject I would not have made my discovery on which light to use for my first shot of the day.

The images here are from last nights lighting test.  A total of three lights were used for this test and two packs.  The two back lights which rim the subject share one Acute power pack.  The light on top has its own pack.   I tweaked the lights more once my neighbor left but it helped point me in the right direction.  Image one is shot with a hard light on top and a 10 degree grid.  Image two is shot with a softbox on top and even though it gives the hair a softer look it does not give the sheen I am looking for.   The background is obviously black and there is a light on both sides of the model from behind.  There are also black 4x4 cutters to block the light from spilling in my lens.   More on the lighting situation in tomorrows blog.

Camera:  Sony A900

Lens:  85mm

Strobes:  3 Profoto Acute heads

Always Dream Big

Prep Day

Today is all about prepping for my test shoot tomorrow.  I sent out emails to all the model agents that sent girls for my shoot.  I wanted to thank them for their time but let them know I have decided on a model.  Then I spoke with the model agent that represents the model I want to shoot tomorrow to arrange for a go-see, (meeting) with the model to take snap shots of her hair and face to show my crew.  It is also very important for me so I can see her current state of skin and hair.

Ring, Ring - The agent just called to let me know my model will come and see me at noon today. After seeing the model I will rent a few things for tomorrow's shoot and go over every aspect of the shoot in my mind and with my crew.  I will also make sketches for everyone to see so we are all on the same page.  Tomorrow's shoot is all about hair and my idea's are intense.  I've spoken to my retoucher already to alert her about my concept.

Stay tuned for more!

Always Dream Big!

Matthew

Model Search

Today was spent on the phone with models agents trying to set meetings to see girls for a spec. I am doing this Wednesday.   The concepts are all dealing with hair and will help get new work for both the model, hair, makeup and myself.  Trying to find the perfect girl with beautiful hair may sound easy but its anything but.   New York has ton's of models from all over the world and they are some of the best in the world, but Los Angeles is a bit different and it can be challenging to find the perfect girls.  After an entire day looking at models comps I was elated to get an email from Elite LA with four amazing girls.  I will see each girl tomorrow in person so I can see their hair and skin quality in person.  

It is slower than it has ever been in my career so it is time to work on new images and push the envelope on what is possible visually.  Stay tuned to see what we come up with!

Always Dream Big,

Matthew Jordan Smith

Mars on Earth

Recently my girlfriends five year old son told me he wanted to see the movie "Monsters and Aliens".  Who am I to say no, so while waiting for the movie to start we saw the preview for "Land of the Lost", and my girlfriend noticed the location and said she loved it there.  The next day we drove three hours from Los Angeles to this location that took my breath away.  I've never really been a nature person but I have always loved the wonder and beauty of the earth.  

Pinnacles National Landmark is a location I must use for a shoot sometime soon.  I took my Sony A900 to capture the day but wished I had taken my tripod images in a different manner .   I won't leave home without it again.  

We arrived at Pinnacles shortly after noon but stayed long after sunset.  The moment you arrive you understand why it was designated a natural landmark back in 1935.  It is simple beautiful.   Throughout the day we enjoyed the beauty of the landscape and I also enjoyed watching the light change throughout the day.  The most beautiful light of the day happened after sunset as the entire landscape took on a different essence.  I hope I captured its beauty but if not I will be back soon.  I used my new Sony GPS unit for the first time, so now I can see exactly where I shot each photograph and even the route we drove to get there.  The Sony GPS unit works based on time so make sure you have the time in your camera set correctly and that it is in sync with the GPS.

Always Dream Big!

Matthew Jordan Smith

Camera:  Sony A900

GPS unit:  Sony GPS-CS3

Birthday Blessings

April 21st, 2009.  This morning I woke up and got on my knees to thank God for another birthday.  Afterwards I put on "Not an Easy Road" a song by one of my favorite reggae artist, Buju Banton.   There is just something about some reggae songs that makes you smile.  

The first call of the day came from my parents and the phone hasn't stopped since. I love birthday calls.  Nothing feels better to me than getting calls and emails from friends around the world who remember you on the day you were born.  Today is a reminder for me to work on getting the birthdays of all my clients so I can be involved in helping them feel the way I do today. 

Speaking of clients, I am up for a hair care job so I'm getting images together that relate to hair care to send to my agent this morning.  Wish me luck!

Always Dream Big!  

Stars and Stripes

I was asked to give a photographic lighting class the day after the Inauguration of President Obama.  The location was  New York City, and the idea was to talk about lighting while giving a demonstration on how the lights worked.  I wanted the class to be more than just lighting instruction so I asked my sponsor, Microsoft, to let me hire my crew and actually do a shoot in front of the class.  The class had the opportunity to watch me talk the crew through a concept and see it come to life.  

I am always asked what inspires me with my photography, and the answer to that is always simply the same.  Life!  My concept for the shoot came from being on a high from the historic day before.  I told my class the concept for the shoot was "stars and stripes" and that I would do a beauty shoot in honor of the 44th President, Barack Obama.  The class had the opportunity to see me speak with my crew and guide them through the process.  As I shot each image was displayed on the monitor and I took questions along the way.  There are only four images in this story but if I were to do this shoot in the traditional manner it would be 6 to 8 pages, but having a live audience slowed the process down considerably.  

To create these images I used one main light and then just two lights in the background to make the seamless white.  We tested the light between each shot to make sure we stay consistent through the entire story.  I shot the story in a manner that would give me flexibility in putting the story together.  Whenever I shoot for a client I try to do the same thing so the client has all the elements to make a powerful layout.  The lighting gear used for this shoot was Profoto, which is all I really use in terms of strobes.

Stay tuned for more beauty in the weeks to come.

Always Dream Big,

Matthew Jordan Smith

Photosynth

In a few days my father will celebrate his 70th birthday.  His actual birthday is April 15th, but I recently had the opportunity to share in a surprise birthday party for him that my mother worked hard to organize and keep secret.   The Saturday evening party was a huge success and a little over 100 people showed up to surprise my father and wish him well.  The moment my father realized what was going on and saw me his eyes lit up.  It was a moment I will never forget.  

My parents live outside Columbia, South Carolina and attend church every Sunday.  My father is  the pastor there and whenever I am in Columbia, I attend with my family.  The congregation is always happy to see me when I'm home but this year I was put on the spot.  Toward the end of service I was asked to stand and in front of everyone was asked if I could take a photograph of everyone in attendance.  Since I was a kid I often have a camera with me, and this day was no different.  I had no choice but to say yes, but I love a challenge anyway.  With no time to prepare or think about how I wanted to photograph everyone I had to come up with an idea in the blink of an eye.  I asked everyone to meet me outside.  It was an overcast day so I was hoping it would stay that way for the sake of my photo's.  Service was over around 12:30 and that is usually the worst time to shoot an image outside but luck was on my side.  Once everyone was outside I started putting the group together which comprised of infants, teens, adults and senior citizens.  I didn't want to just take a photograph and then it hit me.  Photosynth!

Recently while at a meeting at Microsoft we discussed photosynth.  If you are not familiar with Photosynth, simply go to www.Photosynth.net.  The world was introduced to photosynth during the 44th inauguration of President Barack Obama.  During the inauguration CNN asked those in attendance to submit their photo's and the images were used to make one huge photosynth that allows the viewer to move around and zoom in an out anywhere in the image.  The technology is really quite amazing.  While at Microsoft I learned how to make a synth and decided this was the perfect opportunity to make one.  I organized my group and started by shooting the entire group.  My camera was the  Sony A900 with a Carl Zeiss 24-70 lens.  The light was perfect and I thanked God for an overcast day.  I started by shooting the entire group and then I walked in close and started shooting sections of the group.  I focused on the kids, and then the older subjects.  I photographed the group in different sections and walked around as I shot while giving the group direction and having them say OBAMA as I photographed them.  Then only drawback to my shoot was that I only had one card and ran out of space while shooting but still I got enough images to make a photosynth.  Please follow the link and let me know your thoughts.  Imagine what you can do if you had a little time to really think about what you wanted to do.  

The photosynth can be viewed on a Mac, but you can only make a synth from a PC.  First download the software and then go out and shoot.  Please keep in mind that all images are public and can only be viewed from www.Photosynth.net.   Have fun!

Always Dream Big,

Matthew Jordan Smith