Eleanor Whitmore

Chris Masterson

Eleanor Whitmore, Ishaq Clayton

Photo Notes: For the most part, lighting was static and rather minimal (ok, it was near dark).  However, pushing my Canon 40D to ISO 1600, allowed me to get adequate exposures at f/1.8, 1/60 sec.  The truth is, most of the shots were underexposed by about a stop (shooting in RAW allowed me to adjust up in post), but I just can’t get myself to switch to ISO 3200 on the 40D.  It’s just a little out of my acceptability range most of the time.  Newer models can make life much easier in the higher ISO ranges, but this goes to show you, the older gear can still hold its own.  Color balance adjusted to taste.

Low-light shooting of this type was covered in the latest issue of my newsletter.  Sign-up to make sure you’re not missing out on the tips I send to subscribers.

Photos shot last night at 11th Street Bar, Lower East Side, NYC.  More about Eleanor Whitmore & Chris Masterson.

Amanda Kaletsky has recently moved to Brooklyn.  Great voice, beautifully written songs.  These shots were taken last night at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC, July 11, 2010.

I shot this image for Meagan Tubb’s Beautiful Noise CD (2008).  She and her band, Shady People were able to put most of the recording together at Willie Nelson’s studio near Austin, TX after winning a band contest.  The prize consisted of studio time which helped with the budget I imagine.  Meagan’s not one for doing things half-ass, and she wanted the art and packaging on the disc to be up to standard with any nationally released CD.

There are about 6 images we did together that makeup the front, tray, insert, and back panel.  Some feature the band, some just Meagan.  Included are location and concept shots.

I told Meagan that I wanted to use a fan to blow her hair around.  I prepared her for it by warning her that it would definitely irritate her eyes, so we’d shoot fast to try to keep the “watery eyes” look to a minimum.

It’s a good idea to talk the subject through the movements and expressions before you turn the fan on.  A fan and long hair means lots of unpredictable hair movement.  And since I don’t machine-gun the shutter, I rely on experience, timing, and a little luck to get the shots I want.  For me, using a fan for a shot like this is usually a nine shot sequence — three shots in each of three “takes” with the fan on.

You know I love simplicity.  So, for this shot, I pulled out a single light in the form of a Photoflex LiteDome Q39, Medium Softbox with an Alien Bee (B800) on the back end.  I Velcro’ed a flag to the side of the softbox nearest the black seamless background to keep it from spilling light over there.  Shot with a Canon EOS 30D, 50mm, f/5.6, 1/250.

More on my work with Meagan >>

Richard Sanguinetti is a big fan of fallen Tejano star, Selena.  So much so that he’s written several songs dedicated to her memory.  When we shot this, he’d just begun working on a CD project that would to bring these songs together for others to hear.   The location was near Stubb’s on Red River in Austin, TX.  Notes: late afternoon, natural light, 40D, 50mm, ISO 400, f/4.0, 1/125.

I’ve always said musicians and actors are the most fun to photograph.  Even if they’re naturally shy people, they know how to turn it on and give you what you need for a good shot.  Performers will go the distance for you.  Seriously,  most of the time, they’ll do anything — even if it sounds crazy.  And while I never abuse the trust a performer places in me, I will push for something special.

Sometimes, however, the tables are turned.  Someone will come up with an idea that, for whatever reason, challenges me to think differently about how I normally photograph.   Hugo Black hired me to do some publicity shots, and suggested we shoot some of them at a cemetery.  As a photographer who’s generally up for anything, I suddenly found myself in the unusual situation of not being sure how I was going to go about the shots.  Typically, visuals will start popping into my mind at the first mention of the type of location I’ll be shooting at.  But I felt oddly blank about this.  And at the same time, excited and challenged.

What was the problem?  Looking back, I think it had something to do with my tendency to avoid shooting anything I’ve seen done already.  I’ve seen what cemetery shots look like.  I wanted to avoid doing something cheesy or played out.  Everything from the cliché “tombstone” shots of countless goth bands, to beautiful images taken at New Orleans cemeteries raced through my mind.  I didn’t want to do anything that looked like I was trying to hard.  I didn’t want the cemetery to be the prop.   That’s what so many cemetery shots have always looked like to me.  So, I decided I would think of the cemetery as the “world” or environment for the shots, rather than as a concept, theme, or “location.”  Just a mental shift, I know.  But it made a difference to me and to how I’d approach the shoot.

So, instead of draping Hugo over a headstone, or having him lie eerily on the ground with lilies in his hands, or some other nonsense bullshit, I just had him walk, sit, stand and “live” in the environment.  What we got this way was something that looked like a story instead of a bunch of dumb poses.  The cemetery isn’t played down, or played up, it just is.

Stick to your natural style, but explore the possibilities, and you’ll get shots that look like yours.  The best kind for you to get.

Bonnie is a super-talented superstar to me.

The Sideshow Tragedy.  Nathan, Jeremy Nail on bass.  Momo’s, Austin, TX.

In the basement at Shabby Road, Brooklyn.

Drew Smith

Nathan Singleton, The Sideshow Tragedy

More at AustinMusicPhotos.com