Welcome to Photo Diem April 2010

It is April!  Photo Diem has been alive since August 2009 and is going strong.  Yay!

In a nutshell, here is what it is about.  I like taking photos and I take a picture every day of something that I find interesting.  Usually the following morning I work on the image and post it on the internet.  Initially the whole project was done in my personal Facebook profile, but I’ve moved it to the Bender Photography blog.  That will allow others to see my personal work and hopefully learn a bit about my photo process.

This is an evolving project.  I have no idea where it will lead and that’s what is pretty cool about it.  Certain themes have evolved and will continue to grow.

My feeling is that if you are an artist, or are in a creative field, you need to continually work on your art and craft.  Photo Diem is a way for me to practice my artistry and improve my imaging techniques.

I like playing with unique lighting techniques.  This image was lit with a deer spotting light that was shining up from below.  I switched the white balance to “tungsten” (the light bulb) to get a whiter light.  Despite that, I still had to adjust the white balance in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw).

If you are wondering how this pertains to portrait photography, you may be surprised.  I’ve already used spotting lights to create a unique portrait look!  In fact, today I am shooting a few senior models different schools.  Maybe I’ll use that light for some of those shots!