Become Better Photographer: Shooting Wedding Details with Vanessa Joy

*For more information visit AdoramaTV YT page, and of course you can keep up with Vanessa on Instagram @VanessaJoy.

In this episode with Vanessa Joy and her weekly show “Breathe your Passion” on Adorama TV we’re going to talk about wedding details and the best way to capture it. Vanessa shares with us a few tricks that hopefully will bring more unity to your wedding photo gallery.

“First off when I photograph wedding details I’d like to make sure that I’m photographing them all in the same place. While I’m sure the wedding details will look great if I photograph the shoes in one place, the Rings in another, the invites in another, they’re all going go together on an album, typically next to each other on a blog post, so I like the consistency and the cohesiveness, if I photograph them all in the same or similar place with the same or similar light.”

“First when I photograph the shoes I’m usually using a 50mm or an 85mm focusing on the front of the shoe because that tends to be where most of the detail is.”

“Next I’ll swap and put the bouquet in the same exact spot that I’m putting the shoes because again, they’re going to go next to each other probably on my blog. For the flowers I’ll photograph the entire bouquet and then focus on different parts of it like a grouping of the flowers or the stems on the stems it’s very popular right now to have a little bit of detail on them so it’s nice to capture that as well.”

“For the invitation I try to make sure that I show all the different parts of the invitation. Lay it out as they are you know – the invite card, the RSVP card, accommodations, directions, things like that. This is also a really great place to incorporate things like the bride’s earrings, bracelet or even her shoes because hopefully they all match, and it is just a nice little accent to have there.”

“Next we have the rings. The rings I’ve decided to photograph right on the bride’s shoe because it held the rings stable nicely and then also was nice and sparkly, so it had some bokeh to it. Now while most of the pictures that you see here of the details are photographed wide-open around f2.5, f2.8, f3.2 on my aperture I’m going to bump that up for my macro shots because I’m using a macro lens my area to focus is much smaller so I need to make sure that I bump up my aperture to around f5, f6, f8 or even f16 depending on how much light I have. “

“As you can see in these two pictures the first one being shot at f2.8, very little of this photo is in focus, while overall yes it’s light, airy and pretty it’s not focusing on what I want to show off of the detail of the engagement ring. While this next picture here is shot at a much higher aperture you can see so much more. There’s so much more in focus the entire engagement ring the diamonds and the diamonds around it, as well as bringing the wedding bands into focus.”

“Finally we’re going to photograph the wedding dress. Now the wedding dress obviously want to photograph in a place where it lays nicely but I’d like to photograph it in a spot that sets the scene for the day. Here at the Parks Savoy we are able to hang the dress right in front of the venue on a tree, so it’s a perfect spot to let the dress hang. Gorgeous natural light and in front of the venue where it really sets the scene.”

Check out our WORKSHOPS in Los Angeles that teach you hands-on how to make great photos!

One of our closest workshops – Studio Lighting 102 : Portrait Photography Lighting will take place on July 3rd, 7-9pm, in one of our Los Angeles studios !!!

Watch the full episode with Vanessa Joy and Adorama TV:

Billie Lee For Women’s Health Magazine

Billie Lee, newest cast member of Vanderpump Rules, is featured in Women’s Health Magazine.

A quick excerpt from photographer’s bio:

“Jordan is an LA based photographer specializing in events, portraits, and headshots. Recently Jordan collaborated with Monica’s Jewelry to create a visually stunning and compelling series of photographs for their new line of diamond accessories. In recent years Jordan has worked with dozens performers and professionals to capture their unique brands. He is available for both local and on location shoots.”

This session’s crew comprised of:

photographer: Jordan Ring | Website

model: Billie Lee

mua: Ko Willis

stylist: Joaquin Flores

Hair: Tiffany Van Goey

At the location:

Pro Stage II has been adorned with a few additions. Firstly, now there is a huge American flag that covers a good portion of the wall and is already becoming a hallmark of the Pro stages. In addition to that, standard photo backdrops of black, white and grey color, and studio lighting for stills are also included in the hourly rate. Make sure to catch the coolness of this space with your photo and video cameras and book with us NOW.

Timothy Fernandez + Anna Tunhav

For our daily dose of fashion eye-candy photographer Timothy Fernandez has delivered very impressive photos. With help of MGMT represented model Anna Tunhav and the team of PROs, the crew achieved a variety of solid fashion looks.

This session’s crew comprised of:

photographer: Timothy Fernandez | Instagram | Website

model: Anna Tunhav

mua: Joyce Platon

stylist: Karlee Parrish

The stage:

As any of our stages, Hill 8 comes with 3x strobe lights, 3x preinstalled paper seamless backdrops – white, black, grey, make up station with 2x chairs, and other amenities. Besides that, there is the rustic fan, the red phone booth, wine barrels and the British flag that are essential parts of this studio!

Patricklee Hamilton’S Portrait Session

Patricklee Hamilton has stopped by in our studio B for a quick portrait shoot. With help of a single strobe, Patricklee captured great depth of shadow play and beautifully dramatized the subject.

Check out participants of the project:

photographer: Patricklee Hamilton

About this location:

Stage B features all black walls and ceiling, with capabilities to completely shut off the natural window light. Equipped with black, gray, and white background paper, three strobe lights and numerous modifiers for your choice this stage is all you need for a perfect, intimate, creative environment. To check the availability for this stage as well as find more helpful information about our rental please see the WEBSITE.

Yella Beezy “What I Did” Ft. Kevin Gates

Rap artists and social media celebrities Yella Beezy and Kevin Gates recently took our Rain Room by storm of their massive hit – “What I Did”.

A snippet of the director’s story:

“Video Director/Filmmaker Jeff Adair is the Owner & Operator of his self named film production company JeffAdairFilms (formerly Dream.Work.Conquer.Films) – based in Dallas, TX. He started & built his company in 2008 specializing in Music Videos, Short Films, and Commercials. In his music video work, he’s had the privilege to work with Grammy Award Winning Producer Symbolyc One (S1) along with other music artists such as Lil Boosie, Nipsey Hussle, Juicy J, Lil Twist, Project Pat, Bun B (UGK), Los, Juelz Santana, Dorrough Music, Slim Thug, Snow Tha Product, Charlie Boy, DJ Drama, Hollywood Bay Bay, Travis Porter, TUM TUM, Yung Nation and many more. His work has been placed both on B.E.T.’s 106&Park & MTVJams as well as reputable blog sites like WSHH, 2DopeBoyz, Planes & Pigeons, XXL and more. He’s produced, shot and directed commercial work for NYS Collection Eyewear, Bike Dubz, Matrimoney Clothing, Regalia Silver Vodka, Crucifix MMA Gear, and OG XO French Brandy. In filmmaking, he wrote and directed the experimental short film “Blue Whisper”, and was Director of Photography for 2 short films “Odds Or Evens” & “By Mans Hand”. “Odds Or Evens” ended its film festival run with two big awards- Best Drama and Best Overall Film at the 2014 Shorts Showcase Film Festival in Palm Springs.”

This session’s crew comprised of:

director: Jeff Adair | Instagram

model/artist: Yella Beezy

model/artist: Kevin Gates

At the location:

Studio Hill 7 also known as a rain-room stage, offers unique experience for photographers to capture images in a wet environment”. Equipped with one of a kind shower system, now you can shoot models in the “rain” against white/black backdrops. For more information visit stage Hill 7 on our website.

Fiton Gjonbalaj at NYC studio 1 & NYC studio 3

It is not a rare occasion when one of our clients decides to rent out several stages at once. And it is especially easy to do, since usually all of our stages at any location are located on the same floor, so it is a matter of few steps to go from a “rain” to a “desert”. Photographer Fiton Gjonbalaj decided to try this creative voyage in our NYC studios.

About photographer:

Fiton Gjonbalaj is an Albanian-born published photographer based in Brooklyn, New York. Growing up as a painter and charcoal artist since the age of 7, Fiton turned to photography as a means of expressing his creativity. This outlet for his creativity shortly became a lifelong passion.
Largely influenced by the classical painters of the 17th – 18th centuries, his fine art approach to photography gives his entire body of work a characteristic painterly quality. The enduring connection to the people he photographs make every one of his images truly memorable.
In his native Montenegro, Fiton was surrounded by beautiful landscapes. His daily exposure to this breathtaking scenery is a heavy influence on his work, as he photographs portraits with vast scenery surrounding his subject.

Check Out Fiton Gjonbalaj’s work at www.fitonphotography.com

About the studio:

NY Studio 3 also known as “exposed brick” studio is one of our brightest stages at New York campus. With additionally embellished exposed brick and concrete walls, this stage is perfect for a rustic, industrial look. As with any our other stages a standard package of three basic backdrops and three lights is available within the stage already. For more information visit NY Studio 3 on our website.

Yulia Bliznyukova By Wanderlust Creatives

Well known for their soft and slightly pale look, creative duo called Wanderlust Creatives keeps bringing fresh shots to the table.

Members of the crew:

model: Yulia Bliznyukova | Instagram

photographer: Jei, Wanderlust Creatives | Instagram

At the location:

Studio Hill 1 has a few distinct features you will not find in any other stages. Facing the west side this stage gets lots of natural light in the afternoon and has amazing lighting conditions during the golden hour. Among included props are industrial wooden table with benches, two antique green chairs and white leather comfy chair. And the bed. The bed that comes with clean sheets (fees apply) and photogenic look, ready for always anticipated, the “bed scene” Besides, Hill 1 comes equipped with black, white and grey backdrops already installed and three strobe lights included in the hourly rate. Have a look at Hill 1 on our website information, prices and availability. .

Ethan Roth + Kristen Middleton

An artistic duo – photographer Ethan Roth and model Kristen Middleton got together for what looks like a simple test shoot. Applying nice and grainy feel to each photo, photographer was able to translate warmth on the picture.

This session’s crew comprised of:

photographer: Ethan Roth | Instagram

model: Kristen Middleton

Wardrobe: Tremaine Emory | Instagram

About this location:

Photographer’s choice for the shoot was stage C. It features large South and East facing windows, with lots of natural light. It is notorious for accommodating large, high end production crews and sophisticated artistic projects due to its versatility. Enhanced with the large Cyc wall available as well as paper backdrops, grass wall and wood floor corner this stage brings variety to your backstage. Find out more about stage C on our WEBSITE.

Headshot Photography by Robert Brajovic

Using classic head-shot pre-light setups like a 3-strip triangle, OC based photographer Robert Brajovic captured some neat portraits at FD!

Check out photographer Robert Brajovic’s WEBSITE

At the location:

Pro Stage I features a large seamless white cyc wall, as well as standard photo backdrops of black, white and grey color, and studio lighting for stills. Make sure to catch the perks of the space with your photo and video cameras and book with us NOW. A few recent cool additions were introduced to the stage such as a red wall section and a silver lounge chair.