Shooting from Shade into Backlight
I am really, really looking forward to having a full time assistant- for those of you who have applied, I will be posting an update this week, but thank you so much to everyone who has sent in an application. Make no mistake, it will be an awesome job, but it will also require a lot of hustle and getting stuff done. If things pan out like I am hoping, it would be very possible that a second assistant would be hired in the near future.
Had a great shoot with Ashley this weekend for several training videos, some on more of a technical aspect, others more specifically deal with Paintballer Pro and Michael Andrew Lollipops ® which I have been really bad about creating new videos for- I use them on just about every shoot I do.
One thing I have been trying that has been working out great is shooting from shade into strong backlight, exposing for the subject and just blowing the background out- it works great in many situations.
In the past, I would often try to expose for the background and then try to light the subject with fill flash (which in some cases you still have to do). Here is an example of blowing out a sunny background when shooting from shade:I am really, really looking forward to having a full time assistant- for those of you who have applied, I will be posting an update this week, but thank you so much to everyone who has sent in an application. Make no mistake, it will be an awesome job, but it will also require a lot of hustle and getting stuff done. If things pan out like I am hoping, it would be very possible that a second assistant would be hired in the near future.
Had a great shoot with Ashley this weekend for several training videos, some on more of a technical aspect, others more specifically deal with Paintballer Pro and Michael Andrew Lollipops ® which I have been really bad about creating new videos for- I use them on just about every shoot I do.
One thing I have been trying that has been working out great is shooting from shade into strong backlight, exposing for the subject and just blowing the background out- it works great in many situations.
In the past, I would often try to expose for the background and then try to light the subject with fill flash (which in some cases you still have to do). Here is an example of blowing out a sunny background when shooting from shade:
Taken at around noon, no flash, Canon 5Dii, 50mm 1.2 @ f 1.2, 1/500, ISO 50.
First processed with Michael Andrew Paintballer Pro Presets , then Michael Andrew Lollipops ® Action Set! (Orange Peel)
The processing took just a few seconds and I have some videos coming on this soon.
They took us to several places I had never been, we checked out the rock formations in south Maui, which were formed by the latest volcanic eruption here over 200 years ago. 
The textures and patterns were really interesting. I dont remember what the name of this type of rock is, but our guide says it is just below diamond on the harness scale and takes about 50 years to cool off. 
Ash said her favorite part of the trip was snorkeling off the backside of Molokini (the vent crater just west of Makena). The water was the clearest I have ever seen and there were plenty of fish. I had heard good things about scuba diving back here, and it is something I will definitely need to check out once I get some underwater hosings. It was one of the top snorkeling spots I have ever been to. 
We also got to see a pod of spinner dolphins just off La Puruse bay. They arent always around, but when they are, and if you are a good enough swimmer, you can swim out (apparently kayaking is illegal here now) and check them out. If you look carefully, you can see 3 snorkelers checking them out. Our guide also said whatever you see on the surface is about 1/10th of what is below the surface. Spinner dolphins are smaller than bottlenose dolphins. And yes, they would occasionally jump out of the water and spin around. Extremely cool. Another spot I would like to check out again with the right gear. Our guide said there are a few babies out here now, about the size of a football with fins. Would love to see one!
Its always great to have friends visit Maui, I understand why more arent coming out- but is sure is nice when they do. My good friend Ashley is in town for the weekend from Baltimore. I have known Ash for six years. She has been helping me with some test shoots and will be modeling for us on some new training videos I have coming shortly. Today we went kayaking and hiking and also swimming at a waterfall. I admit I need to be taking more pictures of the fun I am having here on Maui (which isnt often). Sometimes I want to leave the camera at home and just take some time off, but I always regret when I do. 
Remember Doug Knisely- the photographer who won the Cell Phone Contest and the Canon T2i? Here is the self portrait with his Grand Prize. Doug sent it in a long time ago, it was buried in emails and I just found it today. 