Tim Engle 7/18/16 Tim Engle 7/18/16

20minute Portrait

I was recently assignedto photograph multiple law firms for a local magazine.

Photographing law firms is something I've done the past few years for this magazine and I really enjoy it. A majority of them are on location, but I do shoot a few at my studio. It always a challenge to get busy people scheduled to photograph. One of the attorneys was in between appointments and called to see if I was available. I happened to have about an hour before my next shoot, so his timing worked out perfectly. By the time my lighting was set up and he arrived, I had about 20 minutes to make some images. Over the years I have worked really hard to get the images that I need, quickly and efficiently. It's taken much practice and is something I'm still working on.

Here are a few tips I have picked up over time.

I was recently assignedto photograph multiple law firms for a local magazine.

Here are a few tips I have picked up over time.

WORK QUICKLY

Having a portrait taken is an intimidating process for many people and I constantly hear, "I hate having my photo taken." or "I am so nervous". When I first meet my subjects, I try to find something in common that we can chat about to help put them at ease. There is no point being a loud, “Out There” person, when the subject is shy and introverted. I take my time setting up lighting and posing them, but when it is time to shoot, I work quick, as no one likes to hold a pose. And the longer you hold a pose the stiffer it looks and feels. If it feels awkward it will look awkward. The only way to learn is to pose yourself, even in front of a mirror so you can see what works.

SUBJECT FIRST, TECHNIQUE SECOND

My approach to portrait photography is all about the person I am photographing. Too often it’s the technical trickery of the photographer that ends up showing through and speaking for the sitter. When that happens you don't really get to know the person in the picture, just the photographer. My goal is to strip all of the extraneous stuff out. Of course, a portrait can never be more than a subjective view of someone. So, even though I am trying to portray the sitter for who they are it’s inevitably my view, my interpretation.

EXPLAIN YOUR APPROACH

Most of the portraits I am making at the moment are commissioned by an editorial client or an organization. Commissioned portraits require a brief from the client including a consideration of layout, style, deadline, budget and availability of the subject. I get organized as much as possible and try to find out about the person I’m photographing. I do a Google search on the person so I have some thing to talk about and some idea of what may resonate with them. I explain a little of my approach to the subject so they know what I am hoping to achieve. Sometimes I want to create a formal structured portrait and other times a more fluid spontaneous style depending on what I want to communicate and what medium the image will be published in. Every photograph, even commissioned work, has a little of me in it in some way.

Tim Engle 6/6/16 Tim Engle 6/6/16

The Light at Preston Castle

For the past few years, one of my favorite side projects is my involvement with the Preston Castle in Ione, CA. It was correctional institute for minors.

The Preston School of Industry was built in 1890 in the Romanesque Revival style. Red sandstone bricks quarried six miles from Ione and made at San Quentin and Folsom prisons make up the castle’s distinct exterior. The Preston School of Industry remained open until 1960 when new facilities for the school were completed. The building remained vacant and fading into disrepair until September 10, 2001.

For the past few years, one of my favorite side projects is my involvement with the Preston Castle in Ione, CA. It was correctional institute for minors.

I stumbled across this location years ago when I helped move my brother-in-law out of the area. The huge red castle is hard to miss as it towers over the town. I made frequent stops along the street to just to look at it. Of course I was always looking for a way to explore and photograph the castle. Finally on the last day when I was in Ione, I realized there was a sign posted for open tours. I called immediately and set up a private photo shoot with Yvonne, one of the lead docents. Needless to say The castle exceeded my expectations and is still to this day one of my favorite places to photograph. The textures and natural decay was something out of a Hollywood set, but better.

As I got to know the foundation and volunteers, I suggested they open the Castle up for photographers, which is how photographers day originated. I ended up becoming one of the photo docents and one of the organizers for the Halloween Haunt. So now three times a year we have Photographer Day. On Photographer's Day, you can roam the Castle on a self-guided tour. Visitors are allowed four hours to explore the non-restricted areas of the castle. This gives photographers the time needed to setup shots without rushing to keep up the pace of our normal informative tours.

On our last photo day I had discussions with a few photographers about how they wished they had brought lights in. My belief is that the castle provides wonderful light throughout the entire day, so at the last Photographer Day I set out to see what light was available. I started in the basement and worked my way up to the second floor, while photographing a model in various light. I was very happy with the results and found locations that I had previously ignored.

Below are some of those photos starting with the basement and working my way up to the top and finishing in the back courtyard. Special thank you to my beautiful model Nicole Williams and my makeup artist Jasmine Cardenas.

I always encourage anybody when they have a chance to visit the castle. And if you dare, “wink, wink” come out to our largest event; The Halloween Haunt. Check the website for tours, events, and more history on the Preston Castle.

All images made on June 6th 2016 with my Nikon D4 and a Sigma 35mm 1.4 lens.

I stayed at f1.4 the whole time and just adjusted the ISO depending on the light.

This image was from the basement in the shower area. The light is from camera right and bounces off the left wall for a nice fill. Time 2:15 pm ISO 640

Image from basement near the front. The light is from the window behind me to my left. Time 2:22pm

One more from the basement, the two windows are behind her giving her an edge light. Time 2:29pm ISO 400

First floor in the infirmary. I LOVE this room! Some of the best light in the Castle is in here. The main light in this image is camera left and a little behind her. Time 2:50pm ISO 2000

Another image from the infirmary, the main light is behind her on each side. Time 2:55pm ISO 500

Now on to the second floor. This is one of the staff rooms. The light from this was from a window to my left and behind me. Also there was a little light from the door to my left. Time 3:07pm ISO 1250

Here is another image from the same room. The light is from the window to my right with a little fill from the door behind me to my left. Time 3:13pm ISO 320

Now we came back down to the courtyard in the back of the Castle. There is a lot of shadow area at this time of day. The light does bounce off the cement and make a wonderful fill light. Time 3:31pm ISO 50

One more from the courtyard. Time 3:33pm ISO 50

Tim Engle 5/19/16 Tim Engle 5/19/16

Thunder Valley Casino Ad

Last month we had another photo shoot with Thunder Valley Casino. Working with them is always enjoyable. For this year's shoot, they wanted to focus on the slots and gaming area.

Last month we had another photo shoot with Thunder Valley Casino. Working with them is always enjoyable. For this year's shoot, they wanted to focus on the slots and gaming area. Last year we featured Illusions Ultra Lounge. I tried to keep the lighting similar for each shoot, so the images from each year could be used together if desired. We were very fortunate to be able to use Dwight Droze and Amy Jane as our models. This was their first time working together, but you would never know it. They hit it off right away and gave us the energetic fun feel we were going for. As always I couldn't do it with out my great crew!

Production manager: Christine Alward

1st Assistant: Chris Wright

Makeup: Jasmine Cardenas

Art Director: John Facundo Jr.

Model Christine Alward for Illusions Ultra Lounge located inside Thunder Valley Casino

I try to always make the environment and light look natural, as if its coming from the casino. For this shoot I used mostly LED panels with some gel's to warm them up. Ad appearing in Sacramento Magazine

Tim Engle 9/24/15 Tim Engle 9/24/15

David Garibaldi

I had the pleasure of working with Artist David Garibaldi in my studio recently. He's working on a new web be sure to check it out.

I have enjoyed David's art for some time so it was really cool to have a close view as he created.

Tim Engle 8/24/15 Tim Engle 8/24/15

Periscope - Anatomy of a photo shoot

Last week I tried something new. A live streaming photo shoot on Periscope.

Periscope is a live video service which allows people to watch and interact from anyplace in the world. My thought was to combine the number one most requested workshop session, “Anatomy of a fashion photo shoot”, with a Periscope broadcast. I broke it into 4 parts.

Anatomy of a photo shoot - Introduction
Anatomy of a photo shoot - The gear
Anatomy of a photo shoot - Makeup & Hair
Anatomy of a photo shoot - Live Shoot

We had 75 views at one point with great questions and feedback.

Below are some of the images from the shoot.

You can follow on Periscope and receive notifications when we are live. Look for timengle.

Here are links to the items we used and talked about.

Be on the lookout for another live shoot soon.

Happy Clicking!

Tim Engle 8/18/15 Tim Engle 8/18/15

Oregon Vacation

Had a wonderful trip to Oregon with the family. It was the perfect opportunity to relax and make some pictures. Here's just a sampling.

Tim Engle 7/8/15 Tim Engle 7/8/15

Cityscapes

I have been thinking a lot about doing cityscapes and going for a deserted feel.

I recently finished up a commercial photography shoot for Sacramento Magazine in downtown Sacramento and the clouds were magnificent! Summertime in Northern California doesn’t always lend itself to lots of storm clouds, so I wanted to make the most of this opportunity.

So, I rushed back to my car to stow my location kit and grab my tripod and Tiffen LE series Apex filter; it’s a 10 stop ND filter.

I have been thinking a lot about doing cityscapes and going for a deserted feel. This was the first chance I had to try this idea out. I found a spot near Old Town Sacramento and shot for about 45 minutes. The empty freeway was achieved by a long exposure, because in reality, Interstate 5 was full of traffic. I liked the feeling of isolation and desolation of the empty freeway next to city buildings. It reminded me of a freeway scene in The Walking Dead before they get into Atlanta, which gave me the inspiration for the tones and look of the final image.