be ready, open your eyes and shift gears
hello world,
Today I bring you a few shots from a maternity shoot I did about 3 years ago in Tampa Bay. To get a perfectly calm bay in the late afternoon was my lucky break. I had envisioned this perfectly calm body of water with my mom-to-be standing waist deep, profile as a silhouette. I saw the image as a B&W long exposure showing movement, softness and mood. Maybe I would put a faux vintage film look to it since I didn't bring any film cams on this trip. I would let her stand there waiting on the water to calm back down into a smooth surface and just before I would shoot I would ask her to hop once and then stand still. Boom, that would be it and it would be a great shot. I would be satisfied.
Well, that shot was underway and the plan was going perfectly. I had my camera set to the lowest iso and stopped down my aperture so I would have a long exposure. I made one exposure, and was chimping on the back of the camera to see how I did when I heard a noise. Well, truth be told, I barley heard the noise as it was covered up by the mom-to-be's overly excited screaming of DOLPHINS! (yes dolphins, no she wasnt having the baby at that moment like you thought!) Three dolphins were coming right behind her and would be in the frame in a matter of seconds. Having the camera locked down in a slow shutter speed wasnt going to work for this scene. I had to think quickly about my camera settings, framing and calming my mom-to-be down to pull this off. The camera was ready in a second, framing would have to be the same as I was on a tripod in the water with only seconds to go. Now, lets calm everybody down. I know, I know there are dolphins. Calm down, no don't look at them look forward, stick your belly out, relax yourself and stay still.!! wait....wait...(water calming to a smooth top) wait... dolphins jumping behind but not all in frame...wait...... ok the dolphins should come up right in the right place....HOP, JUMP!!! ...snap.
I ended up getting both shots however the B&W just kind of faded away and the new color image with dolphins replaced. Even know I had thought it all through and new exactly what I wanted I was aware and open to variation and ready to shift those gears and head in a new direction. Lesson to be learned is to know your gear, hone your craft and be aware of your surroundings and don't be afraid to switch gears.
Keep on clickin'
Parker J
