portaits Archives - Masqueman Creative | Graphic Design & Photography

Oct 25

Turning Test Shots Into Portraits

By Andrew Hughes Carol Hughes, family portraits, Kelli McFerrin, Masqueman Photography, portaits, Tyler Loper, Virginia Beach

When I traveled back to Virginia I ended up in a city park to take photos of a childhood friend and her mother, but this blog is not about that photo session. Instead I am writing about the test shots that came before the actual session. I will often show up to a new location in advance and try a few different vistas. lighting scenarios or lenses.

My mother, sister and nephew were with me so I was able to use them as guinea pigs. There are cases where I have had to photograph myself in various spots but that is much more difficult to do with a remote control and tripod. My sister is a few years older than me, but that did not stop her from scampering up a tree. She was pretty high up there. I thought about throwing her a banana. Her son, Tyler soon joined her.

I had several cameras with me and believe or not, my pocket camera had a faster frame-per-second rate so I used it to snap Tyler jumping out of the tree.

I was keen to check my 70-200 lens since I thought that there might be a focusing issue.

I created tight portraits and checked the eyes to confirm that the lens is tack sharp.

Though reluctant, Tyler did allow me to move him to different settings and snap away.

This kid is getting taller by the minute.

Lastly, my Mom who is more difficult to photograph than Bigfoot, sat still for a 1/2 second… just long enough to steal a single frame. I already know that she will hate it, but I don’t. This is how I think of my Mom… surrounded by light.

Soon the real subjects showed up and the job began, but having help developing my modus operandi was excellent.

May 09

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Brian Collins Photos with Megan Case

By Andrew Hughes Brian Collins, musician, portaits, portrait photography

My photographer friend, Megan Case, got a gig to make promotional portraits of Brian Collins of the Brian Collins Band. He is a talented singer-songerwriter on the verge of hitting it big. I had been dying to try out my new Einstein flash equipment in the field and this seemed like a perfect chance to test the gear so I volunteered as her assistant.

The Einstein studio flash system can become a versatile portable light source when paired with a small lithium-ion battery pack good for 300 full power pops. The advantage is that a photographer can put way more light onto a subject in an outside environment compared to using hot shoe flashes.

We used the Einstein system outside in several locations and then headed to a local bar that Brian had secured for us. As an assistant, I do not usually shoot, but I had an idea that Megan liked and she said to try it.

I set Brian at the bar and put one flash with a large umbrella on him. The concept was to blend the flash with the ambient lights in the room which were very dull. The exposure was about 1.5 seconds so he had to remain still. I had his band mates walk backwards in some of the frames to create a cool motion blur affect seen in the photo above.

A different photo that I helped to finish was what I call “the floating musician”. Real magic was used to make Brian levitate several feet off the ground.

Photo by Megan Case. Retouching by Andrew Hughes.

I love working with Megan because she has a fantastic eye for composition and is one of the nicest photographers you will ever meet. We make a good team because we can bounce ideas off of each other without egos. Our top priority is to get good photos… period. Check out her blog and prepared to be wowed.

Feb 21

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It’s All About ME ME ME!

By Andrew Hughes Andrew Hughes, portaits, self-portrait

Usually, I am not one to sit around and take a bunch of photos of myself. Heck, I barely look in the mirror. I am much more used to being on the other side of the lens where it is safe. What in the world possessed me to take photos with the camera pointing in the wrong direction?

I did not have any photos of myself with shaggy hair and I knew I would probably not grow it out again any time soon. I have kept my hair short since the mid 90’s and about 7 months ago, I just quit cutting it as an experiment. I was wondering how long I could hold out as the hair on the back of my neck started tickling me… and then annoying me. Windy rides in my convertible would make me look like a Japanese anime character. Old ladies would clutch their purses when I would approach, and knew I had to do something soon. I had a short window of opportunity since my wife graciously scheduled me to get a hair cut.

All the photos were taken within 2 hours of each other. I tried to make them all look different. As you can see, I don’t worry about embarrassing myself… notice the bowl cut in the lower row.

I call this my punk rocker yowl!

I call this one the unicorn.

I originally did a similar project back in my B&W film days of college. Here are 2 of the series. And yes, that is technically a mullet I was sporting, but I swear that it was popular back then. I can’t say the same thing about the enormous owl glasses. Somebody should have had a style intervention for me. It is interesting to see how much I have changed over the years, but so too has everyone else.

Feb 03

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Holiday Cards

By Andrew Hughes family, Holiday Cards, portaits

I always get a kick out of getting holiday cards from my clients during the Christmas / Hanukkah / Kwanza season. Here are 2 from last year.

Oct 21

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New Web Site for an Atlanta Tennis Coach

By Andrew Hughes Georgia, Kristoffer mellstrom, Marietta, portaits, tennis, web site design

My good friend, Kris, needed a simple web site for his freelance tennis coaching job. He asked me a year ago and waited patiently for me to get to it. I promised I would do it this week.

I took some photos of him playing tennis on a beautiful fall day, and I designed the web site for him. If you are ever in need of a tennis coach in the Marietta, Georgia area, give check him out at www.TennisKris.com.

Oct 19

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Headshots for 3 Atlanta Financial Advisors

By Andrew Hughes corporate photography, headshot portraits, portaits

At my day job, we recently put the finishing touches on the new Graphic Works photography studio. We always have had part of our office dedicated to studio photography, but frankly it was a little cramped for portraits. I would have to shoot down the hall to get the depth I needed. Not the best situation when dealing with people.

Now, all this all has changed with our new allocation of photo space. I can easily take head an even full body photos with my super sweet 70-200 zoom. The gear is organized and easy to get. This is awesome.

The first subjects in the new space were 3 financial advisors. If you recognize one of the faces, it’s because I had just taken photos of Mark Koppelmann a week earlier. He liked them so much that he suggested that his colleagues get head shot portraits from me. We did 3 quick poses for each person an here they are. For the full gallery, click here.

Oct 13

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Photos of a Promising Young Actress Named Lauren

By Andrew Hughes actor headshot, children, headshot portraits, portaits

Lauren is a young actress and aspiring model who has appeared in many regional plays in the Atlanta area.

The problem is, her professional headshots were out of date… the last ones being over a year old.

Appearances can change significantly for a young person of her age, and casting directors want to know what applicants look like NOW… not what they used to look like.