|
|
Nick Karagiaouroglou
{K:127263} 5/18/2008
|
I see that, Paul! Everybody can see that it was such a shot.
And the thing is, that then the mental and the physical part of it just walk hand in hand. Much like knowing exactly that your next hit on the strings will produce a killer sound some tenths of a second before you actually hit them. I guess that in such cases it can't be anything else than perfect.
Cheers!
Nick
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/17/2008
|
Please send 'em, Julie; I'd be honored to give you an in-depth critique beyond the customary "Hey, nice shot!" ;)
|
|
|
|
Julie Salles
{K:22654} 5/17/2008
|
That sounds exciting Paul ;)
Have a great time, I am looking forward to seeing them. I am working on a self project, it is tough especially with light but once I get one I really like I will post or perhaps I will email you a couple so you can critique it for me on your spare time :)
|
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/17/2008
|
Thanks for the compliment on my lighting, Julie!
I was a theater major with emphasis on lighting design, but ended up in Journalism as a career for many years, so lighting (and it's control) has always intrigued me.
The lighting here was pretty straightforward:
Just one 580EX Flash. This worked only because there was not any object behind her to catch that hard-edged shadow.
Degory was one of the most spectacular women I've had the privilege to work with, but it's funny how strong shots like this bring ever more talented local models inquiring about when I would shoot with THEM. ;)
I've got a pretty exciting lingerie shoot set for tomorrow, so I'll probably be sharing some of those moments with my Usefilm friends this weekend.
|
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/17/2008
|
Wow, Nick, thanks for validating my passion.
There certainly are moments behind the camera when the pulse quickens and you realize you're about to Get THE Shot of the day.
This was such a moment.
|
|
|
|
|
Julie Salles
{K:22654} 5/16/2008
|
I had seen this one in one of your sites and didn't realize you had it here as well. It is absolutely stunning Paul.
Love the lighting as usual with your work!
Best,
Julie.
|
|
|
|
|
Nick Karagiaouroglou
{K:127263} 5/16/2008
|
Hi Paul!
And excuse me please for the eternal delay. That last project in history of science was... well, both a catastrophe and a wonderful thing! Nice to know that it is done.
About your excitement... Paul it is necessary! Absolutely necessary! I know what you want to describe to me. Without that excitement, we really are not going anywhere. It is necessary but it is not sufficient, as we say in mathematics. You just *have* to have that enthusiasm, but not only that. The immediate control of the camera will turn your excitement to an excitement that I can share with you. It is then an open kind of excitement, in the sense that I, the spectator, can share your excitement. Like on this image. It is much like allowing me to participate for just a tiny moment to what you see. And this would be only very incomplete, very unsatisfactory if I wouldn't grasp what you saw right out of the image.
Well, dear friends of the UF, all you "natural born artists" out there... ;-) Do you think that an image like this is only the result of some.. "inspiration"? If so, then please feel free to achieve something similar. ;-)
Hat off again, Paul! You know, I admire your work, and I surely envy your luck to go for sessions with such models. Oh well, some guys photograph unimaginably nice faces, and some others photograph... errrrmmm... empty beer cans on dusty rusty streets. ;-)
Whatever it takes, we go for it.
Nick
|
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/8/2008
|
Thanks, Martin.
Since there were no objects close behind her, I could get away with just using my 580EX flash for this.
|
|
|
|
Martin .
{K:24957} 5/8/2008
|
Paul,
Some the "Best Work" I have ever seen!
Well done my ol' friend,
Martin
|
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/5/2008
|
Thanks for that Nick. You're right, of course.
I must admit there is a certain excitement that springs within me when my fingers curl around Cammy's cool body. Once I have the camera in my grip, I 'see' things differently. Instead of passively observing the world in front of me, I begin searching for color, shape, shadow and texture. It's a wonderful thing.
|
|
|
|
|
Nick Karagiaouroglou
{K:127263} 5/5/2008
|
Thanks a lot for the info about the taking, Paul! Always interesting to know something more about the story behind such good images!
About the philosophy of all that: Of course it is only you, Paul. The thing is that the camera is not "you", in the sense that it is not directly connected to your brain/ideas/thinking/inspiration, etc. It won't understand what you find to be the fine art of the moment. You have to master it for that.
To have ideas and ispiration is nothing. Any kid has that. It's only a modern myth for the incompent that this is so special. To "materialize" these inspirations, to implement the ideas, to turn that vision of the fine art of the moment to a real existing image, it takes way more than to have that vision. At the end I can't see your vision in your head - I can see only your great photo. And this is not generated by mental tranfer of your visions to the camera, but by "pressing the buttons".
Quite the same for all arts, actually. Arts are 10% inspiration and 90% transpiration. Or imagine what kind of music somebody generates by having "inspiration" but not knowing that much about what string to hit and how to grab some chord. And of course also of all the great literature that can be written without the need to learn the alphabet first. ;-)
But the difference to other arts is that our visual sense seems to be much more "patient", or "able to adapt" to much more than, say our hearing. The direct translation of many too many "highly inspired" but incompetenty shot images to music would be simply not even worth talking about it. The visual sense generates an image in mind that many times is not the real photo, but rather an extension of it that beautifies too much. The critique cannot be directed to exclusively to that kind of "imaginary" thing in my mind, since this would mean that each and every photo is automatically great. And thus... if we already assume that greatness of each and every photo, then why talking about them? Why posting them? The whole thing becomes more or less senseless then.
Still I prefer looking at your work, while you base it on inspiration, much more than looking at the inspiration of many too many who never work! ;-)
Cheers!
Nick
|
|
|
|
Sam Andre
{K:12484} 5/4/2008
|
...and eyes you could drown in... Up till now I thought Laetitia Casta had the most beautiful eyes I ver saw...
|
|
|
|
|
Paul Lara
{K:88111} 5/4/2008
|
You said: "...without mastering the camera first."
Philosophically, I'd have to disagree.
If it's a bad shot - it's you.
If it's a great shot - it's you
I think photographers can sometimes spend too many calories concentrating on 'the gear'. That can be at the expense of just focusing outward to find the art of the moment.
I had gone driving to find a grocery store, as our loft was downtown, and drove past this small park with rows of pink and white blooms at their peak (there were no petals on the ground and hardly any leaves). The image of using both colors in the shot appeared as an idea, and I knew I had to take one of the models here to shoot.
I'm so glad I did.
|
|
|
|
|
Nick Karagiaouroglou
{K:127263} 5/4/2008
|
You know something, Paul? Should I someday look like an idiot on my screen, then it would be surely one of your images! And you will be help responsible for my insanity!
What a woman, he says! Well, Paul, the most beautiful face on the word will be still less than average if the photographer doesn't know to enhance its charms. (Believe me, I see more than enough such cases here! ;-)) And the most ugly face will look beautiful if the photographer knows how to enhance its charms. Which says more or less, that no face on this world is simply ugly.
You really got her character! She *is* delicate. And you enhanced that in such a good way with all those softer contours! The glowers match perfectly! This is what I name a good eye for photography!
But then! Hehe! Suddenly, out of all that softness, there come those sharp(est) eyes and the contrast couldn't be better than that!
This one should really be taken and put in front of the eyes of all those who desperately try to create such a fragile, romantic look, without mastering the camera first.
Cheers!
Nick
|
|
|
|
|
jacques brisebois
{K:73883} 5/2/2008
|
incredible eyes, wonderful girl, and a perfect job. Love the composition with the flowers.
|
|
|
|
Abtin Atbin
{K:2052} 5/2/2008
|
Very Nice portrait and great Lighting.
|
|
|
|
Arben Mallaki
{K:10761} 5/2/2008
|
Excellent shot!
|
|
|
|
Mark Julian
{K:36866} 5/2/2008
|
6 foot 1 ? Damn, I could wear my Beatle Boots around her... Very Nice/Pretty shot and kind of threw me cause it's not exactly Lara-ish style on first glance. Then , Dude, I thought it was Hawaii but then later thought it wasn't (after I read it was Denver).... nice, shallow DOP in the shot, The Dude likes it all, mas y mas y mas.......
|
|
|
|
Wolf Zorrito
{K:78768} 5/2/2008
|
Very nice model, I love her eyes.
|
|
|
|
Rob Graziano
{K:6678} 5/2/2008
|
Excellent shot Paul! I wish I could have met up with you...we were in Boulder for only two days and were slammed with customers the whole time.
|
|
|
|
RC. Dany
{K:64104} 5/2/2008
|
Beautiful Paul.
anne...
|
|
|
|
Phil Cassell
{K:1054} 5/2/2008
|
Yes she is, a six-foot delicate flower!!! Beautiful capture my friend.
|
|
|
|
Jason Mckeown
{K:22200} 5/2/2008
|
lovely capture Paul
|
|
0 
