Spotlights!

Over the years we have taken some great photos of the children, but it hasn't always been easy or fun. Part of the problem is the children. They aren't always cooperative. Or if they agree to a photo shoot up front, they rescind their agreement after just a couple minutes. Sometimes I have to resort to bribery. Chocolate has worked wonders.

Another problem is the photographer. He doesn't always cooperate. Sometimes he doesn't understand my vision or he forgets to check the background of the shot, so a great photo of the grandchild is ruined by something distracting in the background. I have to humor him as well as the children.

Last Christmas we wanted a formal Christmas portrait of the threesome. It was a lot of work. Kara purchased matching outfits for the three children. They were VERY cute. We tried out a couple of different locations and groupings before we found something that worked. By then the children were bored and wanted to quit. So did I, but I wanted my photo more.

The biggest problem was that Mark's equipment malfunctioned. He had a problem with the flashes. They would either not flash at all or they were so slow recharging that they weren't ready when needed. It was very annoying.

Nonetheless we got an awesome shot once the shadows were photoshopped some.


For the record: I am not an advocate of photoshopping photos. I like my photos authentic, although I did allow it four Christmases ago when Mark photoshopped out the arms attached to the hands supporting the six month old twins who could not stand on their own.


Because I do not want a repeat of last year's Christmas photo session, I encouraged my spouse to buy some better lighting equipment. My vision of better equipment and his were $1600 apart. He has a lot of photos to take to justify his new set up. It's a bit extreme for a guy who only occasionally takes portrait photos.

In fact, the impetus to get new equipment came last month when we had a lady in the house who does professional photos as a side business. She had some lights and backdrops and I asked her how much they cost. She said $200. It turns out it was closer to $300, but that seemed doable. However, after researching her equipment, Mark determined that he needed something more.

The point of the purchase is to make taking formal portrait photos easier and better. The flashes recharge fast and are very bright. There will be no shadows to photoshop this year. Now all we need are backdrops. And some willing subjects. Here's the first set of grandchildren portraits opa took:




As you can see, my photographer still has issues with background distractions. That's where I come in. I have to help him remember all the possible problems. Like uncombed hair. And pjs. And distracted subjects. I can see I still have a lot work to do. *sigh*