Reimagined Portrait Art: In today’s online world, the very first time a client “meets” you is your portrait online.
What does your portrait say about you? Does it say confidence, professionalism and trust? Or does it say I used a light wall in my office with selfie mode on my phone to get this done super quick?
What do you want your clients to think the very first time they see your portrait?
I have 17 years experience creating portraits that fit into your brand. From colour and clothing consultations, to location choice, a carefully executed portrait can show your clients that you are someone they can trust!
Vermilion PR portraits, Vermilion business portraits, Vermilion brand portraits, Mannville PR portraits, Mannville business portraits, Mannville brand portraits, Vegreville PR portraits, Vegreville business portraits, Vegreville brand portraits, Lloydminster business portraits, Lloydminster PR portraits, Lloydminster PR portraits
If you are a professional in need of a business portrait or you are self employed and would like to update your brand, let’s connect!
Who recognize’s the subject in this business portrait?
When I am creating grad or family portraits in Vermilion, I am checking out my client to see what is the best way to present their body on camera.
That may sound creepy but really, it’s a large part of my job to understand how different shapes are read by my camera.
I do not pose people the same way just because it’s easy. I pose you based on your body type. I will change camera angles, light positions and how you sit/stand and what clothes you wear based on your body type.
Why do I do this?
A camera sees in two dimensions. It can’t tell that your nose sticks out further than your ears. To the camera, all of that occurs on one flat plane.
Whatever is closest to the camera appears larger.
Are you like me and were gifted with a large “honker”. The very last thing I’m going to do is photograph that nose straight on to the camera as that will make it look even bigger!!
If you have been “blessed” with a larger bust line than your maid of honour. The last thing I’m going to do is stand you up straight face on to the camera and photograph you from straight in front of you.
Remember, whatever is closer to the camera appears larger. If I’m not careful, I can add a cup size to your bust line and 20 pounds to your hips/thighs.
Isn’t that amazing? Adding weight to any client’s body due to my inadvertent positioning of you in the image is the very last thing I want to do!
My portrait instructor photographed models for advertising in the clothing industry.
We had one class where he photographed each of us and as we walked up for our turn, he spoke about how he was looking at our shape and spoke about how he analyzed how to photograph each of us to make our unique characteristics shine.
Kim has a large flat forehead, big eyes, heavy cheeks and nose so I’m going to……
Not exactly body image building material eh?
But in my portrait, you didn’t notice my flat forehead, my heavy cheeks or big nose. My eyes were accentuated with a soft smile and long neck line to minimize my larger features.
When I photograph you, I’m going to build into your pose, body lines that will pull attention away from “problem areas” to minimize things you may feel uncomfortable with.
Before I photograph any client, I ask them what are areas they have concern with because I’m not going to put them front and centre or they will not like their portrait.
We choose clothing based on that answer – don’t like the flabby bits under your arms dangling down, don’t wear a tank top! Think your belly is heavy? Wear a fitted solid colour shirt as loose clothing or patterns can add more weight.
I am professionally trained in posing and what this means to you is that I’m going to accentuate your body lines, minimize areas that bother you, coach you on clothing choices to help with that and use lighting complete with shadows to further “sculpt” your portrait.
These are things I can do as I am professionally trained in portraits by an expert in posing and body image.
Don’t like your portrait taken? Give me a try and let’s work together to build a portrait that results in a more realistic version of your beautiful self!
Reimagined Portrait Art – As a trained professional photographer, I wanted to share today what that training allows me to do.
Photography literally means “to write with light”. In order to write with light, I have to understand light. Without knowing how light works, I can’t balance exposures or use light to create dynamic range in a photograph.
This is Mac. A beautiful 2022 graduate. While photographing her session, I grabbed a few images to show what I can do with light. At every session, I bring “fire power” with me. These are flashes that I use to balance the light I find outdoors.
If I face my client to the sun, everything in the photograph is the same flat lighting and my client will be squinting. I don’t want this as my portraits would lack directional light which creates that feel of being 3D in a flat 2D object, a photograph.
I turn my clients away from the sun but this causes their face/body to be in shadow. You can see in Mac that her front is lit in a “normal exposure” from the sun. This means that her front and the background match in exposure. Her back is in shadow when facing toward the camera. If I wanted to expose the image for the background, Mac would be dark or underexposed.
If I expose the image for Mac, then the background and sky are overexposed. You can see this in photographs with a “white sky”.
It is now a thing for photographs to swap in normally exposed sky in photoshop because they cannot get away from overexposure of their sky. Look closely at the sky line in an image – is there a halo at the horizon line? Or does the color tone of the ground not match the color tone of the sunset?
As a certified photography judge, a white sky or a halo along a sky line is a tip off that the photographer did not control the lighting. As a photographer, this is my job!!!
So what do I do? I bring in supplemental lighting. This allows me to add additional light to Mac so she is as bright as the background/sky. She is no longer in shadow but has a directional light across her that adds dimension to the photograph. In order to do this, I have to know how my equipment works and exactly what the output of my flashes are so I can match the exposures. Too much firepower and Mac looks like a ghost, too little and she’s too dark or the sky has very little depth and detail.
I bring fire power to every session so that I can reimagine the Vermilion, Lloydminster, Vegreville, Mannville or Vermilion grad portrait to be something that shows the uniquely beautiful individual that you are! I would love to work with you, shoot me a text to start planning your session today!
Reimagined Portrait Art – It is their final year of high school, how do you summarize all that they have achieved over the first eighteen years of their life? How do you sum all their likes, hobbies, achievements into one image?
You can’t!
Grad is so much more than a cap and gown portrait which in itself is a right of passage for every graduate!
Grad portraits need to include their hobbies, sports and loves:
Grad portraits should celebrate their favourite spaces:
And grad portraits need to celebrate who they are right now, at this stage in their life!
I am professionally trained in posing, lighting and the psychology of photography so I can create portraits that flatter all body types utilizing posing and lighting, and I can find ways to set my clients at ease and enjoy their photography session – even if they don’t want to do grad portraits!
I’d love to photograph your Class of 2022 graduate! Send me a contact email or call and we can get started planning your grads session today!
1 comment
ElnaJanuary 13, 2025 - 2:03 pm
These are all amazing photos….. captures all different sides of this beautiful woman…ReplyCancel
Reimagined Portrait Art – A cap and gown graduation portrait is a rite of passage for any student who has reached the pinnacle of graduation!
I have cap and gowns for many different schools and colleges! If you’d like to have a cap and gown portrait with a natural smile and attention to detail (no fly away hair!), let me know! I’d love to work with you!
Reimagined Portrait Art – I approach wedding photography the same way that I would a family or grad session!
My first question to a new bride/groom is what do you like to do together? Let’s bring that into your portraits, let’s use your favourite hobbies to celebrate the love that you share!
Don’t think you will have time on your wedding day to fit it in? This image took us all of five minutes to create!
I will pre-plan the images with you prior to your wedding day, we will load props into my vehicle and I will have pre-scouted the location at the exact same time of day we are photographing there on your wedding day so I’m prepared to light it easily!
Your wedding day should celebrate the very foundation of love that you will build a life on with your partner. Let’s create a portrait that will remind you of that foundation daily!
Reimagined Portrait Art – It’s time to start planning for grad portraits this spring! Grad portraits are my very favourite thing to photograph as I get to be my most creative!
While some grads groan at the thought of having grad portraits, I guarantee they will get involved Momma if you let them be themselves (and let me be the bad guy!).
In all my grad sessions, I keep in mind that Grandma’s want that perfect, smiling, 5×7 print for their Grandchild wall of frame. Your child won’t smile for you.
In all my grad sessions, I know that Momma’s want matching portraits for their own wall but your current grad doesn’t want to be the same as his/her older siblings.
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Momma’s want their grad to wear outfit A, but the grad wants nothing to do with it.
Let’s take the stress out of grad sessions! We are going to plan the session with your grad who is going to get to wear their favourite outfit in front of their truck/car/dirtbike/skateboard, who will put on your favourite outfit and smile beautifully for grandma!
Why?
Because I’ve been doing this for 15 years. I have 2 (almost 3!) grads of my own. I get it! You have a vision for your wall. They have their own (strong) ideas of what they want!
So let’s do grad portraits that make everyone happy while strongly showcasing your grad’s unique personality, favourite hobbies and smile!
If you look to the right, there’s a contact button. Click it and let’s start planning your stress free Vermilion grad portraits that your grad will love!
1 comment
ElnaJanuary 13, 2025 - 2:05 pm
WOW… just amazing… and look at that sky….. ReplyCancel
Reimagined Portrait Art – Did you recently become engaged? Congratulations! You are about to embark on what can be a stressful journey of wedding planning but I can help ease some of that stress!
What are some of the things you should look into when choosing a photographer?
• experience – how long have they been a photographer, what kind of gear do they have (portable lighting is a must!)
• what back up plan do they have if it rains or storms or is -40 on your wedding day?
• are they insured with professional insurance (not a home owners policy!)
• are they familiar with the other vendors and the venue involved?
• how do they back up your photographs in case your home experiences a loss?
Once you have narrowed down your choices after answering those questions, I encourage you to sit down and think about how you’d like to display your wedding portraits? A wall portrait? A beautifully finished wedding album? Or do you prefer to scrapbook your own portraits? Have a list of the ways you’d like to display your portraits when you contact the photographers!
Finally, budget – there are so many online budget planners for weddings! Bring your budget to your photographer and see how you can get the products you’d love at a cost that is manageable!
If you are planning a small, intimate wedding in the Vermilion area then I would absolutely recommend the beautiful https://www.redfeatherridge.com/ where this portrait was taken near Vermilion, Alberta. Incredible prairie views, private setting with camping on site, fantastic food with great service all in one beautiful location! No need to travel around on your wedding day as everything you need is in one place!
Congratulations on your engagement, I would absolutely love to work with you!
Reimagined Portrait Art – Today is Canada’s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and I wanted to acknowledge that my studio is located on Treaty 6 land. This land is home to 17 First Nations including Dene Suliné, Cree, Nakota Sioux and Saulteaux peoples.
My daughter’s class held a discussion on what Truth and Reconciliation meant. The teacher was Metis and was married to a devout Catholic family. Her family were survivors of the residential schools, his family were the people who worked in the schools and had to “round up” children. I can honestly say I have never heard such a powerful message on Truth and Reconciliation than what I did listening to her class. It had a profound affect on my daughter who was truly moved to acknowledge the darker, heartbreaking side of Canada’s deep history.
Her teacher’s message encouraged me to spend time today educating myself on the land I live on. I encourage you all today to take a moment to research the people’s who first lived here and reflect on what the residential school survivors really experienced being ripped away from their families and forced to assimilate to a new language and culture. For me, this year this hits home very hard.
I was blessed to work with this Cree family a few years ago. She has been dancing Powwow all her life and she brought her husband into this rich and incredibly beautiful celebration of Indigenous culture. This family openly welcomed me into their language, culture and traditions. It was a privilege to create this image for them.
In the Cree culture, the northern lights are their ancestors dancing in the sky. The power of this family who is so involved in Powwow juxtaposed with their ancestors dancing above them still moves me.
Truth and Reconciliation for me is about education. I pray you take time today to open your heart to the incredible sadness of the history of this day but also the incredible richness that is Indigenous culture in Canada.
Reimagined Portrait Art – One of the reasons why I want to redefine grad portraits is for the comparison made in this post and the previous one.
This is Alyx. She loves sports. She’d rather wear sneakers than high heels any day. She’s fun loving and couldn’t put on her game face for the life of her because she simply takes joy in every single moment of life.
I couldn’t portray her in a static pose with this dress, it simply called for movement!
Congratulations Alyx, I couldn’t be more proud of you and I wish you every success in your career goals!
