I helped out with a project called “Emmanuel” that is happening at the university in my town. Tonight there was a big workshop where a big crowd of people gathered to contribute to a large 3-panel mural, and some smaller posters to be distributed. The concept is to raise awareness to issues of justice that need addressing around the world, whether it be poverty, sex trafficking, or just general issues of conflict or abuse. More than this, the project is specifically built around the concept of “Emmanuel”, which means “God with us.” The idea here is that while God also has a plan for heaven, a large portion of the message of Christ dealt with the here and now… Believe what you will about Jesus, but the message of feeding the hungry, caring for the poor, the orphans, the widows, the oppressed, the victims, and so on is a pretty strong stance, and one that the world could use more of.

I focused largely on the posters, since that is more of my field, especially with my work at Circle Six. Although I’m not much of a designer, I like to think I have enough skills to dish out a pretty decent little poster inside an hour. Some of the elements of this poster were entirely mine, and because of the environment, much was contributed. As with most anything, some things I would have done differently were it only for me, but some things were great ideas that I wouldn’t have thought of. It’s always a curious balance.

At any rate, I’ll share with you the poster that was mostly up to me. I modified, but did not write the original copy. The primary font was shared between all the posters for continuity, and was also a choice of mine that was found for free. The TV was a stock image, and I made the glowing effect and the text (as well as warping the photo so that it added perspective). I personally would have left the block of text out of the portion to the left of the TV, but I appreciated that it was a part of the message they wanted to send, so I included it. Here it is for you. Enjoy.

My friend Nicholas Golden Karnick (yes, that’s his real middle name), asked if I’d be able to shoot some photos for his girlfriend, Danielle this weekend so she can put a model card together. I obliged, and these photos are the result.

I struggled somewhat in my head in deciding how to light these photos. I’ve seen enough model cards to know that if you get too dramatic or complicated, you can’t tell what the model really looks like, and thus the card won’t get any clients, but also enough to know that if you make it too bland or flat, you also tend to just sink into the crowd. I tried to strike a pleasant medium by keeping the lighting soft, but not necessarily flat. This was essentially accomplished by placing a softbox overhead (and to the side) to make sure her hair was properly lit, and an umbrella placed at a medium distance away from her, to keep the light from being totally enveloping (by moving closer), but also from being harsh (by keeping it at a distance). Where needed, I also added a bit of reflection fill on the right side of the frame.

If perchance you are looking at my site and would like to contact her for modeling work, go ahead and use the contact button in the drop-down menu and I’ll get you in touch with her.

Enjoy.

Pretty oddball stuff here today. Haven’t done much shooting, as per my goal to relax and kind of take it easy. I’ve been feeling somewhat like I’m in a grind lately.