Christopher Bloor, Alpharetta Wedding & Portrait Photography Blog » Nature

Southern Cold

cbloor — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 14:17:41 +0000

I think my wife now thinks that I am officially crazy. You would think that after 15 years of marriage, she would have figured that out long ago, but I digress. I got up early yesterday and wondered around with my camera in the bitter (-5 w/ wind chill) weather. I loved the light and what it was doing and to be honest, I wanted to take advantage of it.

When I looked over into my neighbors backyard, I saw this hay bale. I knew 2 things when I saw it: 1) It had to be a BW shot and 2) I wanted the viewer to feel the cold. I love the texture of it. How you can see what it looks and feels like and, to me at least, it sure does look cold.

This afternoon I am driving over to Athens (about 2 hours away) to do an outdoor fashion shoot. Let’s hope that the wind is not too nasty for us. I, of course, will post the results later in the week.

Christmas Week Stuff – Portraits & Cold Landscapes

cbloor — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:48:37 +0000

The kids and I spent the Christmas week in North Georgia on Lake Hartwell. The wife has abandoned us (ok not really, but it sounds better) to go see her father in India. So the kids were left to our own devices and ended up having a blast togther.

Below are a series of images I took during the week. The portait work is really just some fun, personal work; Nothing outstanding, just fun stuff. The landscapes: I wanted to try and capture the cold that has been running through Georgia this month.

As always, let me know what you think!!

I had a hard time with the below 2. I could not decide if I liked the color or BW version better. I shot this with the intent of turning it into a BW. But in looking at it, I really think I like the color better.

Our two very good friends!!

I shot this @ 2.8 with an ISO of 8,000. I am still amazed that I can do that!

And my favorite people in the world………..

Early Morning Fog

cbloor — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:13:34 +0000

Just a quick post before we head off into the weekend. We were up at Lake Hartwell this last week (North Georgia) and discovered that we had recently received so much rain that our dock gangway was almost completely underwater. I was able to walk out to the dock but I was chest deep in water. That is how much it has rained recently!

I shot this about 7am last Sunday. The fog was intense; But the sunrise made it all disappear. It was simple amazing. Not sure how that works. If you look at the image on the right side you will see half a dozen ducks swimming away. I must have just missed them.

Light Through the Forest

cbloor — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:37:14 +0000

Sometimes it is hard to see what is going on because we are so focused on what we know and what we are familiar with. However hard we try to change that, sometimes it is hard to take that step, to go towards the uncomfortable. Well, I have been trying best that I can to improve my lighting skills. Far from perfect, but I am finally feeling that I am getting there.

Case in point is the below. Yes this was playing; but that is how we learn right? You will laugh at this, but I just stuck a flash (at full power) in the kudzo and shot away. Not great, but kind of a cool. I wanted to create a glowing, almost a halo, effect. Getting there, little by little. How are you going to learn this weekend?

Sunrise Light

cbloor — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:41:20 +0000

For some reason, I like getting up in the early morning when the light is low and the noise is almost non-existent. It is a time that I relish and look forward to each and every day. Even if I don’t have to rise that early, I still do. Sleeping in to me is getting up no later than 7am. It may have started when we used to live in San Diego and I had to drive up toward Los Angles every day for work. Each and every morning, I used to see the sun rise over the mountains as I drove along the Pacific Ocean. At night, I would drive that same path in the opposite direction watching the sun set into the vast ocean. I felt as if I was all alone watching this magic occur each and every day. Those images, which I saw hundreds and hundreds of times, are ones that I relish in my memory.

I must have given that gift to my youngest son. When I have an idea that involves getting up early, he not only is up for the adventure, but wants to make sure that we get up as early as possible; even if it means at 4:45am. This weekend was no exception. It was about having him to try and fish for the first time. It was so quiet, you could hear the water as it moved across the dock, back and forth. The sun rose in a mixture of dark and light. I don’t think I could have recreated this in PhotoShop had I wanted to.

And when I see images like this, I know why I get up so early in the morning.

And one shot from my son. I loved what he did here. No PS magic, he just turned the camera upside down. And it works so well (at least to his Dad!).

Water Contrast

cbloor — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:40:15 +0000

I have some great portraits coming up soon, but this one shot keep coming back to me and I finally acquiesced and decided to post it! At first, to be honest, it did not do much for me, but I added some tonal contrast to the shot and it just popped off the screen at me. The top shot is what I ended up liking the most, the 2nd shot is the original.

Do you see the orange spots in the water? Those are water droplets that the sun hit just perfectly to have them turn color.

And the original…………