Some New Toy’s In The Camera Bag

I think most photographers will tell you there is always something they want or something they need for there business and I also think that with camera equipment being upgraded as often as computers the continuing of new stuff probably will never stop. I have had a few things that I have wanted to add to the camera bag and I did put a new lens in the camera bag this weekend. I have always liked what wedding photographers can do with a fisheye lens and believe me when I say this lens can add new zest to wedding and engagement photos for your clients. I also wanted/needed this lens for some new stuff I have been planning on doing around the Virginia Beach Town Center and I will have more about that in later post. The Nikon 10.5mm is the lens I am referring to. This lens was not my first choice for purchase because I have been waiting for the release of the new Sigma 50mm 1.4 HSM but this lens is not in stock for the Nikon yet. I have never strayed away from Nikon glass but I have done my homework on the lens and have heard from people that have got ahold of the lens for testing and it look real nice. This lens will be great for portraits and with the 1.4 crop factor this lens will be like an 85mm on a full frame camera. I will post photos from the Nikon 10.5mm lens when I get a chance to break it in.

Ok had time to post a few shots of the Virginia Beach Town Center…

A photo of The Westin at the town center of Virginia Beach, Virginia. The shot was taken with a Nikon fisheye lens.

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A Long Awaited Engagement Session

Wow, it sure does not seem like it has been over six months since I first got together to meet Melissa and her children. The whole time Melissa was under the impression that Marvin (her soon to be husband) would not be back till sometime before the wedding in December. During our last shoot with her and her beautiful children at the beach she told me that he might make it home for a short stay in August. With a much anticipated wait and a very excited e-mail from Melissa the news was out and he was on his way home so an engagement session was surly in order. I had heard so much about Marvin and I was very interested to meet him. Melissa wanted to shoot at Norfolk Botanical Garden and this was fine with me as I do like to shoot at this beautiful place. Melissa, in the short time I got to spend with Marvin I understand now why both of you blend so well together as a couple and my impression of Marvin is, humble,genuine, and very giving. Marvin it was a pleasure to meet you and I will see you very soon, take care.

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Busy August Ahead, Summer Storms Continue.

Just a short post this time as I am busy working on unfinished products because of being sick last week. I have a busy August ahead and this is great news to me. With every engagement or wedding I do I become more bold in trying different things on location as well as in the digital dark room and this is a good thing. Also I wanted to pass a few photos on from this weeks storms. The first was from last night with lightning coming out the side of the tower in clear blue skies with one of the planets to the top left and the others were from a week ago south of Pungo.

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Summer Time Lightning Virginia Beach

Sometimes waiting around after you think storms have moved on or dyed pays off every so often as they did tonight. Tonight’s storms were scattered and went up fast and collapsed just as quick. This shot took place from a fresh and newly developed storm right over Virginia Beach. The storm was so fresh that it had not even reached a mature stage for lightning but had very heavy rain. The very first bolt to leap out of the top of the storm was from the photo below which was a pretty powerful lightning strike. The storm moved to the East and most of the lightning from the rest of the storm was in the heavy rain core and not visible. Also another note with concern to lightning and cameras is I have noticed a difference in photo quality between the Nikon D200 and the Nikon D300. I still have not locked on if it is just atmospheric conditions or if lightning has different effect on a camera with a CCD or a Cmos sensor. I will tell you that it seems like the Nikon D300 is a lot more sensitive to lightning strike like the one below then the D200 was. I will have to take some more shots before I can give a final answer to the question.

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Portraits Of Melissa,Maya & Trey

There is nothing better then putting the camera in front of a beautiful and fun spirited family and I experienced this during the weekend. I meant Melissa and her two children Maya and Trey in Dec of 2007 to talk about her upcoming wedding in Dec of 2008 and right off the bat I knew how much fun it was going to be taking photos of her wedding as well as the family portraits we took this weekend. Melissa’s fiancee Marvin is serving in the armed forces and has been gone for sometime. When we meant Melissa told me that he would not be back until just before the wedding and we would not be able to take advantage of an engagement session which I myself personally enjoy doing. But Melissa told me that he might make a surprise entrance in August sometime and I would get to meet him as well as get an engagement session in before his return. It was funny every time Marvin’s name came up or the possibility of him coming home for a short visit it was like someone turning the switch on in a big power plant as she would get very excited and glow with happiness. My figures are crossed for you Melissa and I am sure we will be talking about where to shoot your engagement session very soon. Here are a couple of photos from this weekend. This was the first time I have shot at Seashore State Park. Thanks guys for being so much fun to work with and cant wait to enjoy your company if front of the camera again. 

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