Tea Time

I really enjoy the process of brainstorming an assignment and watching the many ways it morphs from one idea to the next. The colors, shapes, texture, and light leading me ever down the path to The Shot on the journey through The Land of What If. Here are some ideas I came up with for tea!

Tree of Life

I spent about an hour photographing this necklace; it was a purchase I made while down in Florida in October. It had reminded me of the great big tree at the end of our road that all of the neighborhood kids used to go hang out and climb. Great big live oak with massive branches hanging low to the ground. I wonder about that tree a lot still; if it's still there, what kind of shape it's in, if I'd still have the courage now to climb as high as I did back then. How many neighborhood kids have called that tree their own personal "The Tree" since I was a kid? Maybe one day I'll see it again! Until then, I have this necklace to remind me of it.

From the Kitchen

Some photos of the delicious things that have been going on in my kitchen lately!

Tuna Waldorf Salad

Today was one of those photo sessions where everything came together and I had to stop and do a little dance! The planning for this shoot started yesterday, and I didn't expect it to go on for as long as it did, but the end results were well worth the effort! I spent about 10 hours sketching out [and erasing and re-sketching!] the layout that I wanted, which product would be in which container, the color scheme, and lighting ideas. I had to go purchase the food items, and with the weather being super windy and cold and my needing to work outside for this shot, I had to wait until today to actually work with the camera! I started at 9:30 this morning prepping my props and products and began shooting shortly after 10. I worked the scene for about an hour, brought my materials inside, and then reconstructed everything again to make some studio shots of the layout for another hour. That completed, I constructed my sandwich, made a few photos of that too, and then had my lunch as I began the editing process at around 12:30. I spent about an hour and a half looking through and then finally editing my four final photos, which puts this session at around 15 hours!

My kids have gotten into the habit of coming home from their day at school and checking out what I have been working on while they've been gone. It's always the best compliment when my eight year old picky eater comes home and, even if he doesn't care for the food pictured, says, "I don't like _______, but that looks awesome! Is there any left?"

Recipes for happiness.

Someone asked me the other day: "I notice that you commonly take the shot from directly above the food. Do you think this is the secret to creating the abstract, graphic quality of your images?" I thought it was a great question because not only did it parrot back to me what my intentions were and that I was hitting the mark, but really solidified my vision for me. There definitely are certain things that I want in my photos, an interesting angle is just one of the facets. Color, shape, and texture are integral to my style, as is my choice of lighting. I want bold, in your face images that make you want to go out immediately and pick up the product I've just shown you! I make images that elevate the ordinary into the decadent; that tell the story of food, whether it's your bowl of tomato soup and crackers, or your afternoon cup of tea.



Here again, color, shape, texture, even with a little different lighting and different angle. Can you smell the jasmine as you patiently wait for the green tea to turn the water ever darker? I love the shape of this little glass, even with it's scratches, and I think putting it in this gorgeous light while surrounded with some sort of grubby looking textures makes this photo exactly what I expect of all of my photos: simple, graphic, decadent. I take my inspiration from many, many different sources - other photographers, music, drawings, movies, and plenty of abstract ideas, as well. Most of all, I just listen for that little whisper that instinct has to offer; what story do you want to tell today?

A chocolatey redesign, and other big changes!

I just launched the redesign of my website and blog this morning, and am loving the way it looks and all works together! It was important for me to pare down my main website because not only do I really dislike having to maintain a big, bulky website, but .... External Focus Photography is becoming obsolete! You may have already noticed that this blog's address has changed to http://emthomasphotography.blogspot.com in anticipation for my new domain name on the website; it's in the works. I've gone as far as I wanted to with that work and branding, and am ready to fully move into the new direction that my photography has taken me.

I am in the processing of forming a new company with two very talented and wonderful photographer friends of mine, and I'm really excited about our future together! This is another reason why I felt it important to put my former site to rest, as well. I will still be maintaining Em Thomas Photography and this blog as my personal portfolio, and it will eventually be linked into our main business, Thomas Artus King Photography. As a creative group, we will be offering a variety of services ranging from wedding and event photography, commercial and corporate photography, as well as family portrait work. Look for us soon!

The redesign of my website and blog are based on a recent photography assignment from our Pro Project 52 group, run by Don Giannatti. Our assignment was based on "chocolate," and I spent half a day photographing and arranging various chocolatey goodies while my family paced in anticipation of a taste. Below are a few of the resulting photos from that day; I hope you enjoy them... and if they make you want chocolate... give in! ;)

What's on the menu?

I've been having a tremendous amount of fun playing with my food this month! I really enjoy the colors, shapes, textures, and finding the perfect composition to compliment my subjects. I find myself mentally making photos of things while walking through the grocery store, and bringing my vision to life is like scratching an itch I didn't know I had. I love it!

Guitar Hero

I've been reading Lighting Essentials: A Subject-Centric Approach for Digital Photographers by my friend and mentor, Don Giannatti, today which spurred on my deciding to play around with some lighting. I had a major breakthrough learning something dead simple about my equipment that had been alluding me for nearly a year, which is going to make things so much easier! In my own defense, I haven't used my flash unit overly much, but it was precisely because of the aforementioned problem I had been encountering. I am going to start having a lot more fun with lighting now!

Fleur de Sephora

I say all of the time that I don't want to be a commercial photographer. The headache that goes along with getting The Shot in conjunction with my perfectionism and lack of equipment is sometimes mentally crippling. I sweat and curse for hours over a project that I imagine another person with the proper tools can have set up, taken down, and processed in a fraction of the time; maybe I am wrong in thinking that. So why do I keep plugging away at this project geared towards commercial photographers?

The above photos were taken on top of a kitchen table, using 2 regular household desk lamps and white foam core, and lots of swear words. I fiddled with the lighting for an hour and a half before I ever took a photo. I have learned how to "see" when I look at something now, where before I didn't know what to look for. I've learned that being resourceful is something that I will always be, and that's great, too. I've always heard the phrase, "write what you know," and "work with what you've got." I think when you learn how to see the difference between what's there and what needs to be there, the getting there starts to get easier. So, desk lamps and curse words be damned; I am going to get the job done, even to my own high expectations!

Tempera

Here is my latest Project 52 photo; the assignment was "Product Shot with a Twist," and we were to use eggs and any other product of our choosing. I decided to have a look through ye ol' flickr for shots of eggs because I couldn't really think of what the heck to do. I came across this photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7147708@N04/2344012347/ and fell in love with the colors and the way the photographer lit it. I spent a lot of time contemplating how I could pull the elements of that photo out into something new without blatantly ripping it off. Took a break to help out my youngest son with his homework, and one of his books to read was set in the middle ages, which tripped off the "hey, paint used to be made using eggs...."

Text and layout courtesy Don Giannatti.

S'mores

I would love to say it was tasty, but it was covered in lighter fluid so I had to pass. Maybe next time! ;D

Coke on ice, cherries on the side

I made this photo for Project 52, assignment 13. I am head over heals for Project 52 and the way it's helped me push myself harder to make the photos that I want! I have never worked with liquids outside of waterfalls and rivers, so this was a challenge for me. I didn't get quite as much splash as I wanted to, but I had a lot of fun and continue to learn a lot in the process. I have no aspirations to become a commercial photographer, but I want to know everything I can learn about this thing called photography that I love so much!