blog | photography by David Kennedy » portraits

Katie at the Gardens

David — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 18:39:01 +0000

Katie at the Gardens, Sarah P. Duke Gardens, Durham, N.C. | Canon 5D Mk. II and Zeiss Planar T* 85mm f/1.4 ZE lens | Exposed 1/250 sec. @ f/3.2, ISO 100.

While testing the Zeiss 85mm two weeks ago, I ran into Katie at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens and made a quick portrait. While I’d really need to have them side-by-side to do a more thorough comparison, it seems that the Canon 85mm f/1.2L Mk. II has far superior bokeh, but that the Zeiss might actually be a sharper lens from f/2.8 and smaller–but the Canon would definitely win at the largest apertures. Either way, the Zeiss has fantastic micro-contrast, good bokeh, and clearly has potential for portraits…so long as your subject understands that it will take a second to (manually) focus!

Cal-Sag Canal Diptych

David — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:30:15 +0000

Portrait diptych: Brett Witte, left, and Heather Calkins, right, on the bow of the US Fish & Wildlife Service's electro-shocking boat on Oct. 7, 2010 on the Cal-Sag Channel, south of Chicago, Ill. | Canon 5D Mk. II and 85mm f/1.2L II lens

Content © 2010 David Kennedy | View Original Post | Comment | Filed under Master's Project, Updates | Tags: Asian Carp, Canon 85mm f/1.2L II, Chicago, diptychs, EOS 5D Mark II, Master's Project, photojournalism, portraits

Like living on a working river

David — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 01:52:36 +0000

Capt. Dan Egan minds the rear of the boat as Steve Gray stands on point at the bow of the empty barge while they push it up the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal on Illinois Marine Towing's "Albert C." on October 20, 2010 near Lemont, Ill. | Canon 5D Mk. II and 24-70mm f/2.8L lens @ 38mm | Exposed 1/60 sec. @ f/10, ISO 100 (flash @ -1/3 EV)

A few more frames from my day on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal with Illinois Marine Towing. I wanted a little “more” both from the portrait of Dan Egan and the image below, with Steve Gray growing in proportion from one frame to the next. As for the third image, I can’t help but be drawn to photos of flowing water, although usually I try to make it silky, I enjoyed the way that the faster shutter speed froze the large droplets.

(Two more photos after the jump!)

While trying to position the barge parallel to the others, Steve Gray, a deck hand for Illinois Marine Towing, takes point at the front and radios-in the location to Captain Dan Egan in the pilot house. | Canon 1D Mk. III and 70-200mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4x II TC @ 280mm | Exposed 1/250 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 100.

A pump clears the water out of the lower tank of a barge at the shipyards near Lemont, Ill. A barge may be flooded intentionally to help even its load. | Canon 1D Mk. III and 70-200mm f/4L IS lens @ 165mm | Exposed 1/1000 sec. @ f/4, ISO 200.

Content © 2010 David Kennedy | View Original Post | Comment | Filed under Master's Project | Tags: Asian Carp, Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L, Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS, Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, EOS 1D Mark III, EOS 5D Mark II, photojournalism, pictorial, portraits

So long, and thanks for all the fish

David — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 17:52:30 +0000

Calin Ilea diptych - 3 October 2008, just after participating in the Missouri Photo Workshop in St. James, Mo., left, and 1 October 2010, on the second-to-last day of co-coordinating the Missouri Photo Workshop in Macon, Mo., right.

Today, a Romanian Fulbright student at the University of Missouri School of Journalism will defend his project to his committee to earn his M.A. in journalism. When I met Calin Ilea two years, ago, I had no clue our friendship would change the way I approach photography. He’s headed home on Thursday, but I can’t be in Missouri today to celebrate the (likely) completion of his project with him. Are rain checks good in Romania, Calin?

Sources of Inspiration

David — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 16:00:59 +0000

Jeff Phelps, proprietor, Saints Rest Coffee House, Grinnell, Iowa | Canon 5D Mk. II and 85mm f/1.2L Mk. II lens | Exposed 1/60 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 100.

Last weekend, I traveled from Missouri to Iowa to visit my Alma mater and some of the people who were crucially influential for the beginning of my career in photography. (My dad is the most influential of all, but it was in college where I found people who urged me to take my photography in the direction that it has traveled since my graduation in 2006.) When I return to campus next year both for my five-year reunion and to peddle the re-print of my book, I hope to use these images as the basis for a series of portraits of people who mean so much to me.

I’ll just have to make a note to myself to reserve the 85mm f/1.2L II from Canon Professional Services so that there will be some consistency among the images. It may just be the most beautiful lens in Canon’s line-up. . .

Matthew Kluber, Assistant Professor of Art, in his office at Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa | Canon 5D Mk. II and 85mm f/1.2L Mk. II lens | Exposed 1/200 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 100.

Anne Geissinger, freelance photographer and co-author, Volunteer Vacations: Short-Term Adventures That Will Benefit You and Others, Grinnell, Iowa | Canon 5D Mk. II and 85mm f/1.2L MK. II lens | Exposed 1/800 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 100.

Cutting Room Floor

David — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 07:06:24 +0000

I have finally had a chance to go over all of my images from the Tour de Missouri, as well as my other shoots from the week, and found three images that I thought were particularly interesting but were unpublished–they did not find their way into the Columbia Missourian, or my Blog, for that matter–until now!

Old Courthouse reflection, St. Louis, Mo. Canon 5D II and 24-70mm f/2.8 L @ 70mm; exposed 1/500 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 100

I saw this composition with the imperfect reflections of office buildings and the Old Court House as I was walking to the downtown Hilton to pick up my press credentials for the first stage of the Tour of Missouri. This is cropped fairly heavily, so I do wish that I had switched lenses to the 70-200mm f/4 I L IS, but I was in a rush to get to the race before it started without me!

More after the jump!

April Greenwood, left, and Luke Musselman, right, continue their conversation behind their coworkers as they promote Liquigas and the other major sponsors of the Tour of Missouri / Canon 1D IIN and 300mm f/4; exposed 1/1000 sec. @ f/4, ISO 200.

Oh, do I ever wish that the “amputated leg” on the left edge of the frame were not there! It interrupts what is otherwise a comedic juxtaposition of stiletto-heeled boots and men’s (extremely) casual-wear.

Dustin Lane, pictured on the 13th tee and a manager of the Perche Creek Golf Club, is promoting "night golf" at the club's three-par course in Columbia, Mo. The club has installed several lights to illuminate the course at night, and it is beginning to grow in popularity / Canon 5D II and 70-200mm f/4 L IS @ 70mm; exposed 1/200 sec. @ f/11, ISO 100.

Dustin Lane was my first environmental portrait assignment for the Columbia Missourian. Knowing that the story is about how the Perche Creek Golf Club is now illuminating its golf course at night, I came to the golf course–at 4:00pm–with the idea to knock the ambient light down a stop and use lights to add drama. While the select for the paper is very dramatic and one I’m happy with, I feel that this other photo (above) is a better image, even if the concept of “night golf” doesn’t show through nearly as well. Of course, I worry now that I’m reviewing the photo, which I made using three lights surrounding Dustin, that I may have made him look a bit too much like Dexter. Not intentional!

Content © 2009 David Kennedy | View Original Post | Comment | Filed under Columbia Missourian, Cutting Room Floor | Tags: Columbia Missourian, lighting, outtakes, photography, photojournalism, portraits

Some inspiration in slideshow format

David — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 07:18:54 +0000

I was watching some audio slideshows for a class assignment and found a few that might be of interest to viewers of this site.

Martin Schoeller and Steve Pyke are staff photographers for The New Yorker and have an interesting discussion about some of their portraits that are being exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. through this fall: http://www.newyorker.com/online/multimedia/2009/01/12/090112_audioslideshow_portraiturenow.

I recognized some of Schoeller’s portraits from a different slideshow that was originally published on Media Storm. He certainly has a distinct style. Makes me want to go and make some strip lights………

Studio Lighting: Portrait of Jarrad Henderson

David — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 16:50:07 +0000

This past weekend I photographed Jarrad Henderson, a fellow photojournalism masters student at MU. It was a class assignment to make a portrait first with a single strobe, and then with multiple lights. That’s where the fun really began. The only problem is that I have two images that I like, so it’s hard to choose!
Ultimately, I believe this first image is the more successful of the two:

Canon 5D Mark II and 24-70mm f/2.8L Lens @ 70mm. Exposed 1/125 sec. @ f/16, ISO 100

More after the jump.

The second portrait, below, represents an idea closer to what I would do in nature/wildlife photography: go for tight portraits with clean backgrounds. I didn’t actually try this composition until the very end, and only captured a handful of frames. In retrospect, I should have worked this a bit more while I was in the studio, because it shows promise.

The reason I do not consider it to be as successful is that the rim lighting is not quite as effective (not as complete). Also, it is illuminating some distracting hairs to the lower right. (It’s not his beard, but his long hair unfortunately framed!) I’ve also had to crop it much tighter than I wanted to, because I did not notice the position of a light stand–growing out of his chin!–until it was too late. However, the tight crop gives me an idea for a similar portrait, just without Jarrad touching his chin.

I show it because it demonstrates what would be a good idea, if done a little more purposefully.

Canon 5D Mark II and 70-200 f/4L IS Lens @ 183mm. Exposed 1/125 sec. @ f/16, ISO 100

Finally, I come to how these two images were made. A light in the back, gelled yellow, was projected upwards onto the gray seamless. The key light was a strobe on a stand with barn doors to keep the light from spilling onto the background; light from the key was then reflected back onto the “unlit” side of his face, giving me a lighting ratio of 4:1 (f/8 versus f/16). Finally, a third light was positioned directly behind him for the rim “effect.”

Lighting diagram for both studio photos