Concert Photography; Robert Randolph plays The Neighborhood Theatre

I really enjoy photographing musical artists. I love it when I get home and see I caught the magical energy of the musician. There are several venues in Charlotte that are alot of fun to watch live music. One of my favorite places to see a show is the Neighborhood Theatre ( http://www.neighborhoodtheatre.com/ ), located in the funky NODA district ( http://www.noda.org/ ). When Robert Randolph and the Family Band (http://www.robertrandolph.net/ ) played the Neighborhood Theatre, I grabbed the Canon 7D and got up close and personal with the band.

When photographing a concert at a place like the Neighborhood Theatre, you open the camera bag and grab the fast glass. I crank up the ISO on the 7D and open up the lens aperture. No flash photography here! When I process the photos, the noise reduction feature in the Lightroom 3 software gets a full blown workout. You gotta love the magic of digital photography!

Robert Randolph is a great guitar player, playing a pedal steel and electric guitar. Robert and the Family Band really brought it to the crowd with their bluesy rock jam playing. They also have alot of fun performing. It's always a good show when the crowd is up and dancing and Robert made sure his fans were enjoying themselves!

Robert Randolph

Talented Fingers

Playing it Jimi style!

Robert invites the ladies up on stage

Cousin Ray Ray on guitar

Sister Lenesha Randolph belting out some vocals

Keyboardist and guitarist Brett Andrew Haas

Danyel Morgan playing the bass

Please support live music!

If you enjoyed the photos and my blog, please let me know. Also, please feel free to share my blog and photos with anyone who may enjoy them.

See you next week!

Peace

John

www.noblecoastphotography.com

noblecoastphotography@gmail.com

Hot Day, Hot Cars and Hot Photography! Photographing Classic Cars!

I love cars. I like the engines, the chrome, the lines, the body details and all of those things that create a car's unique character. So when the Food Lion Auto Fair makes it way to Lowes Motor Speedway I break out the Canon 7d and start shooting. Well it was hot, over 90, with the sun blaring down. A hot day with all those hot cars. Photographing cars can be challenging with the shiny metal surfaces and reflective chromes bouncing the light all over the place. So what do I do?  I seek out and photograph the true beauty of a car. I look for the light on the curvey fenders, those great hood ornaments, the shiny hubcaps, and those shapely bumpers. Now that's the way to photograph a car!

I was happy to arrive before the crowds and before the sun became blazing hot!

Lowes Motor Speedway

I've got a thing for old Corvettes!

And fast Chevies!

Self Portraits are easy when photographing freshly waxed cars and shiney hubcaps!

Lots of chracter in these beauties!

Tags!

Gotta love those hood ornaments and chrome mirrors!

I hope you enjoyed the car photos. If you know anyone who has a hot ride and wants some hot photos, contact me and I'll hook them up!

See you next week,

Peace,

John

www.noblecoastphotography.com

noblecoastphotography@gmail.com

Love to Learn

A great thing about photography is that there is always something you can learn. I enjoy learning from other pro photographers who have developed an artistic style and a business model that has brought them a level of success. It's enlightening and so informative meeting a photographer who is confident about their work and successful in their business.

 I recently completed a Creative Portraiture course at the Light Factory  http://www.lightfactory.org/ . Teaching the class was Kim Hunter of Kim Hunter Studio www.kimhunterstudio.com . Kim is a talented portrait and wedding photographer who uses natural light and minimal gear to create her wonderful portraits. I enjoy working with natural light when creating portraits, so I found Kim's photographic insights and tips very helpful. Kim also spoke about her business approach and the use of social media within the photography market, great information!

The class had some great photo sessions in down town Charlotte. After a photo session, we held a photo critique and commented on each photo's content and composition. Without continuous critique of your work, it is difficult to grow as an artist. You also learn so much by seeing how other photographers compose and photograph a session. I really enjoy studying someones creative composition and personal style within a photograph. Always learning!

Here are some of my photos from the class, enjoy!

Some random people I met on the streets of Charlotte:

 
                                             

Some of Kim's friends I photographed in Charlotte:

Some of my classmates working it and having fun:

See you next week!

Peace, John

www.noblecoastphotography.com

noblecoastphotography@gmail.com

704 905 9403

Black and White Photography Yesterday and Today

Wow, do I love Black and White Photos! In high school I had my first Black and White experiences. In my photography class we would use Black and White film and develop the film in a darkroom. It was then that I started to understand light and shadows. I began to study the photographs of Ansel Adams and Edward Weston and learn from their work.

Edward Weston

Digital photography allows me to create Black and White photographs in my digital "darkroom". I enjoy photographing portraits, architecture and landscapes to produce a Black and White print. Not all photographs will look "great" in Black and White. I carefully choose photographs that have the light, shadows, textures, and composition that I beleive work well in Black and White.

This is a photo I took in San Gimignano, Italy. I like the textures of the brick walls and cobblestone street. They capture the light and create great shadows in this photo.

This Black and White photograph was taken in Charleston, SC. I love all the light at the end of the alley!

Portraits can look great in Black and White. For this photograph, I worked with a single light source and created this "Retro" image.

You already know I love to photograph newborns and babies. Well, here's a cutie celebrating her 1st birthday. I finished this photo in what I call a "Fantasy" Black and White look.

 
Let me know if you like Black and White photography. If you have a photo session in mind, contact me and let's do it together.

Thanks for visiting the blog and hope to see you here next week.

Peace,

John

noblecoastphotography@gmail.com

www.noblecoastphotography.com

phone: 704 905 9403