portraits and headshots

Portraits, Headshots and Stock Photography

Teegan dropped by the studio yesterday to do some face pulling for a series of stock photos. Don’t forget that in addition to wedding photography and stock, I also take portraits. Check out the portraits link above to see details for family portraits and corporate or commercial head shots.

portraits and headshots

wedding photography

New Package Details and Pricelists, I Want Your Feedback

I’m about to completely redo my photography price lists from scratch. Here’s your chance to tell me what you want and how much you want to pay for it. Weddings, portraits, anything – please let me know what you would expect to receive and how much you would expect to pay. Just send me a message from the contacts page or via Facebook.

And as an incentive – the most helpful responder gets a free portrait photoshoot. Also, please go like my page at http://www.facebook.com/DavidFreundPhotography

wedding photography

Great Engagement Photoshoot in Lismore

When Katie and Jamie arrived for their engagement photoshoot, I knew they’d be nervous. Katie had told me previously that they didn’t have any good photos together. Guess what? They do now.

We had a great, relaxed time taking their photos in a Lismore park. No stiff posing, no cheesy mugging for the camera. Just really good, laid back fun and laughs.

Getting your photo or portrait taken should never be a scary thing. It should be a wonderful experience. By doing an engagement photoshoot before your wedding, you get to avoid Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates and find out exactly what you’re going to get (see what I did there Jamie, that’s for you).

portraits

Super Special Portrait Photography of Wonderful People

A few weeks ago I got to take some very special portraits of some very special people.

When my parents come to town I normally grab them to model for me to take some stock photography of ‘seniors’. This time I decided to do something a bit different.

It’s important to me to continue to learn and grow as a photographer and I have been studying some innovative portrait photography techniques that initiate displays of genuine emotion. No instructions to “stand there and smile”. I used these techniques on Mum and Dad and they took us to a wonderful place.

portraits

This ended up being one of the most enjoyable photoshoots I have done in ages. I loved doing it, I love them and the love they have for each other is clearly evident in the pictures. Here’s a slideshow of a bunch of images from the photoshoot.

Time to Win Some Photography Awards. Why I Even Bother Trying to Play This Frustrating Game

It’s that time of year again where I sit back, look through all the work I have produced over the past year and try to select images to enter into photography awards.

It’s difficult and frustrating. I normally end up being super critical and kick myself that my work isn’t up to scratch – and then a pile of images similar to the ones I reject end up having everyone go bananas over, with numerous awards given to them. Ironically, stuff that I would have simply deleted because I don’t like it, invariably grabs the attention of judges. Bah.

The idea of awards is to showcase the depth of talent and skill of the photographer, so it annoys me when someone enters a bunch of very similar images that all do well. I love to see photographers who push the envelope and do a range of different things. It may be within the same category like weddings or landscape but I like to see individual photographers showing off all their skills rather than honing in on a niche.

Controversy reigns supreme as photographers work to the letter of the law regarding the rules, rather than the spirit of the competition. Photoshop skills become more important than photographic skills. Snide comments, bitchiness and anonymous posts on Twitter encourage, enliven and enrage. It’s a circus.

Do clients care? I doubt it.
Does it improve my work? Possibly.
Is it worth the time and expense? Maybe.

So why bother?

As a solo photographer I work in a bubble. I think my work is great. Entering competitions is my way to benchmark my work. See how it stacks up against the best of the best. So it’s time to select work for three competitions. The International Pano Awards, The NSW Professional Photography Awards and for me the big one is the APPAs (The Australian Professional Photography Awards).

This year I have got a shortlist to sort through consisting of landscapes, wedding photography, portraits, architectural photos and other commercial work. Time to take a big breath and jump in the deep end.