PIX IQ Profiling my still life work

Hello all you fans of still lifes! I am featured on Pix IQ for my new work entitled Presence. Pixiq.com is a new site that profiles the best of the best in the photography industry. They have a great resource of contributors and info on all things photography. I am proud to be included in their featured photographers listing.

http://www.pixiq.com/article/featured-photographer-sarah-brown

Click on the link for all the information!

Monarch Butterfly Begins Anew!

I spent the morning from about 6:15 to after 8am watching this amazing act of nature. The first frame is the initial exit of the chyrisalis; the wings take some time to unfold and stretch out; once flat, the buttfly begins to practice flapping and dry the new wings. Do I dare get metaphoric?

Halloween Portraits!

Is anyone else surprised that Halloween in almost here? I finally accepted this past Friday at a great party! Between the cute costumes and the candy, I had a great time. I am always available for that special event or even just because. Here are some photos:

Experimenting with HDR and Oceanscapes

I have a new body of work inspired by my childhood of growing up on the Atlantic Ocean coastline in PB County, Florida. There is something inherently beautiful about the ocean or any body of water within each state of being. One of my first memories of a significant body of water was in Vermont. I woke early and alone walked to the dock to watch the sunrise. I can remember the details of the water: her color, the water dew bugs, and the steam rising as the sun rose. I was only 12 or 13 years old, but the majestic presence and beauty left me in awe. This morning, over 20 years (wow!) later the wind was blowing and the ocean surf was ruff with rip currents. The power of water is amazing to me. I am experimenting a bit with HDR and combining multiple frames of exposures without any hint of being overly processed. As most of my colleagues and clients know, I am dedicated to creating work of photographic integrity, as I did in the wet darkroom.  


So, check out my new portfolio of work: Oceaneana:
www.sarahbrownimages.com

New Work Using Old and New Ways: Treasures of Blue

Dillweed
2010
Cyanotype
by Sarah Brown



From a new series of work, Treasures of Blue, using both the old traditions of traditional photography and the technology of scanners and computers to print large scale images. Prints will be for sale on 13x19 Velvet Fine Art Paper. And yes I do all my own printing in my studio. Send an email for inquiries and to purchase: sbrownimages@gmail.com

 

No Limits, 

2010

Cyanotype

by Sarah Brown

Portrait Retouching- what does this mean? and Why you need it...

During the fall and winter season in South Florida, Portrait sessions are almost a daily bullet point on our studio to do list.  I had a client who expressed an interest in understanding what the heck retouching means. I include retouching as part of my packages that include a CD of images. With so much techo stuff out there surrounding and redefining photography, I want to have a good communication line with my clients to ensure their happiness. I think the challenge is understanding that everyone's meaning may differ. So, be sure to ask about what is included in the retouching aspects of any Portrait Contract.

That said here are some definitions, which I wrote from my point of view as a professional artist and portrait photographer.

Integrity of the Image: Back with film there was little I could do to change the negative. Today, I can do almost anything to an image even without viewers knowing. The digital integrity of the image is all the tiny dots together to make up the image. Changing these dots to alter the meaning, idea, subject, cuting/pasting, or moving things crosses over from Photography to Digital Imagery. Everyone uses software to download and view images, but making any alterations to the little dots changes the original image at capture.
My personal preference is to maintain the integrity of my images. With portraiture, this is very challenging because we have some to visually expect a level of softness (less wrinkles), glowing skin (no blemishes), and perfect skin color (tonality). Every photographer today uses software that makes these corrections. Any Photoshop expert/professional can do this without the "plug in" freely in Photoshop. I have and used both options in our studio.

Basic Retouching: After I download the images from my card to the computer viewing software where I edit, I set the remaining images to have a perfect white. This ensures I have the exact skin tonality (specifically with portraits) or , with my landscapes or documentary work, a perfect histogram (logarithmic pattern that illustrates how the software reads the black, grays, and white).  Now that I have a perfect white, I can add more light or darken in areas, clean any spots from the lens or sensor, saturate or unsaturate. Basic retouching, in my studio, is not altering anything, but enhancing what is there with the pixels (tiny dots).  For portraits, this means healthy skin color with eye correcting for wrinkles and under eye circles, white teeth, and desired color saturation (depends on the client's usage and preferences).



Here's an example:  Original Capture was in color:

Org. Capture                                         Post Production                          

As you can see, I did absolutely nothing to the left image. The right side was after I did my BW conversion method (my own little mix), a little tonality balancing with the history brush in Photoshop, and sharpening of the infant feet. I think I also cropped a bit too much on the left and may change it. 

That is why I have prints all over: view them into perception and note the changes I would like to experiment with to find what feels best to me. 

Office Portraits for a new You! Promote yourself on Linkdin, Facebook, and even Twitter!

Reinvent your look! My new package of business portraits at the office offers professionals the convenience of headshots at the office or an arranged location. 

With a CD of your best poses, you will be ready to send off the new you to the printer for promotional pieces, as well as, prepared for all the demands of a great portrait for social media and marketing. 

Call and book for your team today!

Special Thanks to the team at Raymond James-Wealth Wellness.