Foto Friday #2- It's All About the Glass

First off- Happy Thanksgiving! I'll be posting photos from the Blakey Thanksgiving here shortly but I wanted to maintain true to form and post another Foto Friday today! This Friday I want to talk about the glass- that's right, the lenses.

FACT: Your lenses are probably the most important part of your photography equipment. I have heard it said by other photographers that Camera bodies may come and go, but the lenses you keep, and I would have to agree. The right lens is really everything for getting the right look and feel to a shot.

MYTH #1- I can skimp on lenses by purchasing an off-brand lens (i.e. sigma/tamron) that has the same technical specs. Some might enjoy these other lenses, but I think there is a reason that the best photographers out there are using the same brand of lenses as their cameras. They are simply better. I started out with a Tamron lens and noticed a SIGNIFICANT increase in quality, color, sharpness and overall "pop" to my photographs once I purchased my first canon. Since then, I haven't looked back and probably never will. The only lens that I have heard recommended above the "brand name" lenses is the 50mm Sigma 2.8 macro- I hear it's killer for ring shots.

MYTH #2- To be able to get great images, I have to spend a buku of dollars on lenses. While the best lenses will cost you a pretty penny, you don't have to have them to create images that are, shall we say, Classy and Fun. Don't let yourself be focused on the lenses that you don't have, master the lenses that you do have and save up for upgrades.

Canon has some FANTASTIC lenses that you won't have to borrow against your house for that I would like to recommend.
50mm 1.8- $90- you can tell this is a cheap lens by holding it in your hand but it was my first Canon lens and it takes really sharp, clean pictures! Anyone just starting out on the Canon system should DEFINITELY purchase this lens!
50mm 1.4- $350- If you have the dough, I would upgrade to this lens. It is much sturdier and being able to go down to 1.4 on the Aperture make it a fantastic portrait lens! I love it!
35mm 2.0- $200- this lens is my newest purchase and I absolutely could not be more thrilled with this lens. The pictures are sharp, color is awesome and I love the angle without distortion on the sides of the image! If you look back to the engagement session that I previously posted- 80% of the images were taken with this lens and they came out not too shabby. I think it is a great lens where you want to be in close but still be able to get the interaction between a couple.
I also own the 24-70 L Series 2.8 which is also a great lens that costs just a tad more than the others. It is very useful at weddings when you want to be able to grab a variety of shots/angles without changing lenses very often.
For weddings, I ALWAYS rent the 70-200 L Series 2.8 IS lens. It is a must have for during the ceremony and at receptions where you want a front row seat on the action without snuggling up next to mom and dad. I love the DOF on that lens and it is a must have for low-light situations. I rent it from Samy's Camera and it really isn't that expensive.

My Wish List (hey, Christmas is coming...)
70-200mm IS 2.8L 85mm 1.2L 35mm 1.4L

Today's tip boils down to this- MASTER YOUR LENSES- know how to make the best use of them in certain situations and be creative. Don't always be caught up in the equipment that you don't have, learn to be a great photographer with the equipment that you do have in the mean time.

Until next Friday, stay Classy and Fun....

Bill

Brian + Becca

I'm not gonna lie, I've been looking forward to posting this. The only thing that could have made this engagement session more enjoyable is if my wife Cory had been able to come along. Brian and Becca were such fun to hang out with but I am pretty sure they not-so-secretly enjoyed the opportunity to hang out with each other...

Brian and Becca are getting married this coming April at the Valencia Hyatt and I am super stoked to have a front row and back row and not-in-a-row seat for the festivities!

Brian and Becca, thanks again for the wonderful day!
BLOG READERS! I've done a few different things in this post, let me know if you enjoy the album-spread esque pictures! I had a lot of fun editing this session (the new Coldplay EP helped out as well).

TAGS: Engagement Photography, Santa Clarita Wedding Photography, Santa Clarita Wedding Photography, Santa Clarita Engagement Photography, Los Angeles Wedding Photography, Los Angeles Engagment Photography, Engagement Portraits, Orange County Wedding Photography, The Master's College

Foto Friday #1- It's the Photographer, Not the Camera

Aren't you glad it's FRIDAY? While Fridays have always been an enjoyable day for me, since I have started working for my church, they have become even more enjoyable. Why, you may ask? Because they are my day off. And I for the most part get to hang out with my lovely wife on these days!!! Tonight we are going to Disneyland and it is the first day of Christmas time there. Yeah, we are pretty excited.

All that to say, I wanted to be able to share my excitement for Fridays will all of you. Lately I have been getting a lot of requests from up and coming Photographers who would like me to help them take their photography game to the next level. While I can't help out everyone individually, I thought that Foto Friday might be a good way to share photography tips that have helped me become a better photographer.

You may not know this but I have NEVER taken a photography course and have learned 100% of what I have learned from fellow photographers, 1 book and the internet. So now I am giving back.

FOTO FRIDAY TIP #1- It's the photographer, not the camera.

When I say that, I must instantly qualify that statement by saying that if I was given the chance to have a point and shoot camera vs the Canon Mark III 1ds- I would choose the latter every day of the week and twice on Sundays.
But here's what I am getting at with this post- the more decisions that you take away from your camera and make yourself, the more creative and higher quality your photographs will be. Many people buy a fancy SLR (single lens reflex- or detachable lens) camera and put it on fully automatic mode and assume that they will get amazing photographs simply because they have an expensive camera. Not true. A photographer who really knows how to use a Canon Rebel XT will get pictures that are far superior to a novice photographer who puts the $7000 canon camera on auto and snaps away.
So what does this mean- Photography takes some effort! It is like many other things in life where you will get out of it what you put into it. So, two things to take away from this post-

#1- Manual Mode- I shoot 95% of the photographs I take in manual mode because that is where I have the most control over the settings for my shot. If you don't know what you are doing, manual mode will yield you stinky pictures (yes, they may actually smell) but if you do- oh so good. Manual mode is incredibly intimidating at first with trying to understand shutter speed, aper-what? and ISO? However, there is a book that incredibly helped me to understand the nuts and bolts of photography in general. You can get it for about $17.11 on Amazon. Understanding Exposure. The author uses pictures to demonstrate everything and reading this book will definitely not make you feel like a photo nerd. Not that there's anything wrong with being a photo nerd... Read this book and practice! Get comfortable with manual mode, because your photographs will be better when you do!
#2- Know how to adjust the settings on your camera. Plain and simple, you may have to crack open that manual to learn how to adjust the aperture, shutter speed, ISO and a few other things on there. Obsessive reading of the manual may just make you a photo nerd, however. Read the first book to teach you about how to do photography and use the manual to help you apply that to your camera.

Well there it is, the first Foto FRIDAY! I will be endeavoring over this next year to be posting a helpful photography hint EVERY Friday so bookmark me on your google reader or check back on Fridays!

And if you have a photography question that you are dying to get answered- email me! I would love to be able to be inspired by you for a future Foto Friday post!
bill@billblakey.com

There's no retreat in this staff....

I love these people. Every year in the Fall our student ministry discipleship staff head down to Encinitas for a weekend for some good new-fashioned staff training and staff bonding. This year was phenomenal. I felt there was such a unity amongst the staff and a good time had by all. We sang, ate, learned from God's word, and stayed up way too late playing mafia.

My partner in crime Ken Flower and I had the privilege of talking with our staff about discipleship and meaningful relationship and I am very much looking forward to continuing this year in ministry alongside these brothers and sisters at my church!

I didn't get to take many photos due to the overload of awesomeness I was experiencing, but I did have the opportunity to roll down with a few of the guys to document their early morning surf sesh (I had to head back up and finish preparing to lead a discussion).

I love how these guys always pray before embarking out on a session.

Oh, and here's James and Molly.

UPDATE: Family Sessions!
If you are interested in having me take your family photos for general Christmas card awesomeness this year, let me know! I still have a few spots available to get your photos before Christmas!

Tags: Corona Family Christmas Portrait, San Clemente Family Christmas Portrait, Lifestyle Portrait, Aliso Viejo Family Christmas Portrait, Irvine Family Christmas Portrait, Mission Viejo Family Christmas Portrait, Newport Beach Family Christmas Portait, Fullerton Family Christmas Portrait, Yorba Linda Family Christmas Portrait.

Whitney + Jeremy

Last weekend I had the pleasure of photographing Whitney and Jeremy's Wedding! It was such a blessing to be around these two. You could tell that they absolutely loved each other and were so happy for all of the family and friends that came to their wedding!
The wedding was held at Compass Bible Church in Aliso Viejo and it was so fun to get to be with all the wonderful folks at CBC again!

Thanks again Whitney and Jeremy! Keep enjoying your honeymoon extravaganza! Tags: San Clemente Wedding Photography, Aliso Viejo Wedding Photography, Orange County Wedding Photography, Compass Bible Church

Just One from last night

You've got to love when you are able to capture an image like this straight out of the Camera (SOTC).

It's What a Pumpkin's All About...

That's right, it is that time of the year again. PUMPKIN CARVING CONTEST TIME! Last weekend Cory and I carved pumpkins with the college group from our church and by now, the entries are in.
You can check out Cory and I's pumpkins (as well as many others) on my office buddy and Virgina Tech Fan extraordinaire Ken Flower's blog- www.kenandbeth.wordpress.com

There are many great pumpkins on there, so I understand if you don't vote for mine. But if you do, I won't be dissapointed.

Oh, and in regards to the subject matter of my pumpkin, some of you may mock me for my love for In-n-Out. As Ken Flower said, "don't confuse obsession with passion."

Have a great weekend everyone! I am shooting TWO weddings this weekend and Cory is working so it is a busy weekend for the Blakeys! We're both looking forward to some restful time together on the back end!