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Our Holiday 2012 photos...
So one Sunday in early December, church got cancelled because of the weather & road conditions. Since Ginger was already getting the kids ready, we decided to keep that forward momentum going and knock out some family photos.
We did a set indoors first. Ginger let the girls wear makeup (not normal) and forced my son to do his hair (also not normal). After much frustration during the first set (see below), we took a breather, had lunch, and then changed and went outside for the 2nd series. I think the food helped. The kids were much more cooperative during the outdoor set (I didn't have to threaten to ground anyone during this series, so I guess that's an improvement!).
Loads of challenges in this shoot. My oldest daughter does not like to take photos or smile (like, ever...). You'll see what i mean below. My youngest, Jack, will smile, but generally NOT look at the camera when doing so, and, if you can get him to sit still for more than about 2 seconds, consider it a miracle! Hannah, my middle daughter, won the MVP award for being the most cooperative; she's the only one who didn't give me any troubles. My wife hates the cold (hates...with a passion), so i was rushing through the entire outdoor series. The batteries on my IR remote died, so anytime you see me, it's after setting the timer and sprinting around to stand in the photo.
All considered though, I still REALLY like how some of these turned out, especially the outdoor series.
C&C always welcome!
1.
My son's idea of posing while I got the lights dialed in.
2.
Up first, Hannah.
3.
Drama queen alert!!
4.
Mom trying to help. It only got worse!
5.
Trying to get a decent one of the girls.
6.
Shared this one previously in the teaser thread. You'll start to see the trend with the eyes as you scroll down.
7.
Cropped down just a bit...you can't see his Mom holding his hands down at his sides.
8.
I shot quiet a few of just these two...unfortunately, my daughter's eyes looked kind of sleepy in most of them.
9.
The siblings.
10.
The family together.
11.
The family, hamming it up.
12.
13.
My son, trying to run through the camera frame as it snapped.
14.
Mom and Dad, hamming it up!
....and then we transitioned outdoors. I think I mentioned previously, I just returned from Afghanistan. While I was there, my wife and I had talked about doing family photos when I returned. I came up with this idea of everyone wearing a vest for them, so off to Eddie Bauer (.com) we went. Everyone got to pick out a vest that they liked. When I'd originally envisioned this shoot, it hadn't been quite so cold!
15.
Probably my favorite shot of the day. I wish I'd centered myself a little more, but such is life when rushing and using the timed release.
16.
Hamming it up again. This one went out to all our families/friends.
17.
This was another of my faves. This was the only photo where my oldest was smiling...unfortunately no one else was. So I photoshoped in my son's face from another shot in this series. I also layered in all of Hannah, my middle daughter, from another in this series. Getting all wood panels to match up was loads of fun!
18.
I think my son was throwing the snowball.
19.
Me and my glowing-white complexion!
(taken after everyone else had retreated indoors)
20.
This is my neighbor's "tool shed"...such an awesome old building!
~jb
We did a set indoors first. Ginger let the girls wear makeup (not normal) and forced my son to do his hair (also not normal). After much frustration during the first set (see below), we took a breather, had lunch, and then changed and went outside for the 2nd series. I think the food helped. The kids were much more cooperative during the outdoor set (I didn't have to threaten to ground anyone during this series, so I guess that's an improvement!).
Loads of challenges in this shoot. My oldest daughter does not like to take photos or smile (like, ever...). You'll see what i mean below. My youngest, Jack, will smile, but generally NOT look at the camera when doing so, and, if you can get him to sit still for more than about 2 seconds, consider it a miracle! Hannah, my middle daughter, won the MVP award for being the most cooperative; she's the only one who didn't give me any troubles. My wife hates the cold (hates...with a passion), so i was rushing through the entire outdoor series. The batteries on my IR remote died, so anytime you see me, it's after setting the timer and sprinting around to stand in the photo.
All considered though, I still REALLY like how some of these turned out, especially the outdoor series.
C&C always welcome!
1.
My son's idea of posing while I got the lights dialed in.
2.
Up first, Hannah.
3.
Drama queen alert!!
4.
Mom trying to help. It only got worse!
5.
Trying to get a decent one of the girls.
6.
Shared this one previously in the teaser thread. You'll start to see the trend with the eyes as you scroll down.
7.
Cropped down just a bit...you can't see his Mom holding his hands down at his sides.
8.
I shot quiet a few of just these two...unfortunately, my daughter's eyes looked kind of sleepy in most of them.
9.
The siblings.
10.
The family together.
11.
The family, hamming it up.
12.
13.
My son, trying to run through the camera frame as it snapped.
14.
Mom and Dad, hamming it up!
....and then we transitioned outdoors. I think I mentioned previously, I just returned from Afghanistan. While I was there, my wife and I had talked about doing family photos when I returned. I came up with this idea of everyone wearing a vest for them, so off to Eddie Bauer (.com) we went. Everyone got to pick out a vest that they liked. When I'd originally envisioned this shoot, it hadn't been quite so cold!
15.
Probably my favorite shot of the day. I wish I'd centered myself a little more, but such is life when rushing and using the timed release.
16.
Hamming it up again. This one went out to all our families/friends.
17.
This was another of my faves. This was the only photo where my oldest was smiling...unfortunately no one else was. So I photoshoped in my son's face from another shot in this series. I also layered in all of Hannah, my middle daughter, from another in this series. Getting all wood panels to match up was loads of fun!
18.
I think my son was throwing the snowball.
19.
Me and my glowing-white complexion!
(taken after everyone else had retreated indoors)20.
This is my neighbor's "tool shed"...such an awesome old building!
~jb
Justin Benson
CTU Photography
CTU Photography
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Comments
Thanks! We were talking about some follow-on options with the shed too. It seems like it's been raining non-stop since about the time we took these photos though, so haven't been able to get back out there and try anything else.
I picked up the background at a fabric store a couple of years ago. It's really (really) cheap fabric...i don't even know what kind...some sort of felty-cottony (yeah, that's a word) stuff. Haha. The speckle pattern comes from being back-lit by the massive window it's sitting in front of (the only big/free wall I had to work with. I think it works great in some of the closer shots (e.g., 6-7), but is a little too distracting for my tastes in some of the other shots. I got a nice B&H gift card for x-mas though, so bring on the seamless paper rolls!
CTU Photography
Thank you for posting.
Marcelo
www.CottageInk.smugmug.com
NIKON D700