"Cameron, do you like robots?"

About a week ago, I learned that a high school kid in my neighborhood was going to be in a robotics competition this past weekend.  On Friday, my branch manager received an email about the very competition from a family member.  He asked me, "Cameron, are you interested in robots/robotics?"  He told me about the email he'd received on the competition.  He also told me it was free to attend.  I'm hooked.

As Leila usually works all day Saturday, I was free to go and see what it was all about.  I took my camera, of course, and came out with some evidences of its nerdiness.  It was super intriguing and entertaining, for sure, but I was certainly in the midst of a different crowd that afternoon.

ACW ... a pleasant surprise

At the turn of the new year, I was contacted somewhat out of the blue from one of my good old high school friends.  She was getting in touch with me to ask about signing me up to work with herself and her husband.  They manage ACW Utah - American Championship Wrestling.  They were getting ready to come back from a two year hiatus with the promotion, and were looking to expand and improve.

I remember watching professional wrestling at a very young age with my dad when Hulk Hogan was in his prime.  He had opponents such as "The Macho Man" Randy Savage, Jake the Snake, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair, The Undertaker, The Mountie, The Big Bossman, and the like.  Those were some classic wrestling days ...  I also more recently was a fairly regular viewer of WWF Smackdown when it aired on KJZZ every Thursday night.  I loved the Rock, and his "$500 silk shirt" coupled with the peoples' eyebrow and elbow ... "Can you smell ... what the Rock ... is cookin'?"

Working for a local professional wrestling promotion was never something I had expected myself to do in my photography career.  I have to say it was sure a surprise to consider the opportunity.  I loved the prospect, though, and I have thus far been able to expand my repertoire into work that is proving quite dynamic and interesting.  Here are a few of the promo pics I've pieced together for them:

The work for ACW has proved thus far to be really fun, and they're only just now getting started up again.  It's really liberating to be given the chance to show them what I can do - I'm the one who makes most of the design decisions - they've hired me to simply produce a great final product.  I love that!  Here are some shots from the show itself:

It's a blast.  I love that Leila gets to come along and shoot with me, too.  I don't think she's had even anywhere near the meager history of mine in watching pro wrestling, but it's pretty hard not to enjoy LIVE.

I have also done the web design for ACW.  It was a pretty impromptu proposal, but I knew I could do it.  Wow, what a difference!  I'm glad they're so happy with the product.  It's neat to be involved in something that will help my photography and design prowess gain more exposure.  Even greater to see the matches from so close-up. ;)  Visit the site at www.acwwrestlingonline.com.

New Glass!

I love tax time.  Or, I guess I should more appropriately say, "tax refund time."  This year much of my refund went towards the loan that is now very very close to being paid on my car.  I did get a bit more than I thought I would, however, and decided to splurge a bit. ;)

Check out the new glass I got for my camera:

Telephoto:

Wide Angle:

I am super excited for these new lenses - telephoto will especially come in handy for when I'm shooting baseball games and can only get myself as close as the foul line to shoot the center fielder.  Wide angle is extremely useful for taking landscape shots and scenes where you want to include the "big picture."

Contact me today at www.cjrphotography.net to schedule your portrait session!

YYTPS - what a difference!

YYTPS - that's the acronym.  It's supposed to mean "use your tripod, stupid." I don't know why they put two Ys in it ... it's missing the U ... but that's the acronym.  I first heard it from my Graphics teacher in high school - maybe he was mixed up?  Possibly.

What it all means, though, is that you shouldn't forget to use your tripod.  WOW, what a difference it makes when you bring your tripod along!  ... especially in lower-light situations. I've got two pictures for you as an example below.  The first was taken out my bedroom window as I was simply hand-holding my camera.  The second was what I got after I told myself, "YYTPS!  UYTPS?!  Just use it!"  The third may look familiar from the post This Contest ... Rules - I threw in a nice big crescent moon for looks.

My Philosophy on Family Photos

As I've developed my photographic style and taste, I've come to greatly dislike studio photography ... perhaps even a bit unfairly. I much prefer shots that are on location in an element that says something more about the person in the picture and lets them let loose a bit.

I do not plan on purchasing my kids' school pictures.  Why should I let myself fall into the rut of having new pictures only once a year that are framed and hung in the hallway or put up on the mantle of the fireplace?  I plan on having pictures taken much more often, and never with a painted canvas in the background ... ick.  I would much rather have fun, dynamic, outdoor portraits that reflect and follow the seasons.  Pictures more often is so worth it!  You end up with a better catalog of how your family has changed over time, and it's something fun to go out and do together.

It is very important to me to ensure we have family pictures that document our lives - I've always got a camera handy when Leila, my fiancee, and I do something together.  I'm not always taking loads of pictures, but it sure is nice to have around.  Compiling these pictures and organizing them on my computer makes it simple to go back and share in the memories.  At the end of each year, I turn our adventures into a video album.  When that time comes, you've got plenty of shots to choose from and work with!  It's just "one of them things."  By always having the camera handy, you add into your annual collection a little at a time.  At the end of twelve months, you've got a treasure trove of images to sift through and create lasting memories.

Pictures don't have to be a pain! Visit my website for pricing on portrait sessions and DVD albums.

Engaged!

Great news! I'm engaged, and to a photographer no less! I proposed to Leila on December 18, 2009. The following day we already had plans of taking new portraits of each other downtown before leaving for Christmas in WA with her family later that afternoon. So, on Saturday morning we met up with my longtime friend, Amber, who is hungry to learn more about shooting technique and post-production magic.  She's quickly turning into a great assistant.

... working with the diffuser ...

 

... talking about the diffuser ...

 

... showing Amber how to fold the 5-in-1 ...

Here are some of the images I've turned out from our shoot:

"FUN" Family Shoot

"FUN and Family pictures usually don't go together, but we had soooo much fun yesterday. Not only did Cameron take our photos, he did a video interview with each of us. He then put together an amazing DVD, combining our interviews, photos, and outtakes. We love it! He listened to what I wanted for our portraits and they turned out great. Thank you for making this experience so memorable for all of us." -- Kathy M.

I had a family shoot at the end of November with a whopping ELEVEN people!  We all had a blast, and the pictures turned out great.  They also opted for the DVD video with interviews.  Check out the Portraits gallery on the website to see some of my favorite images from the shoot.

I've posted the complete video below. This will give you an idea of what you can expect from a DVD compiled by Cameron J Reynolds' PHOTOGRAPHY:

This Contest ... Rules

Last October, Zions Bancorporation put out an invitation to its employees to participate in a photo contest. Bank employees would be able to submit their own images to be considered for availability on the myPHOTOcard website through online banking. Employees would also be the ones who would vote for the winners.  There would be 5 winning entries, each receiving their image on the website for clients to choose as a background image for their bankcards; prizes ranged from a $500 VISA gift card for the winning entry down to a $25 card for fifth place.

What did this mean for me? I thought it would be easy money! The contest was unveiled just before October, and I printed the contest rule sheet.  It said all entries were to be received by noon on October 31st.  I knew I had plenty of time. I however, have always proven most creative (and most efficient) when the deadline is knocking at my door. Naturally, that sheet ended up sitting on my desk for three weeks.

The whole month of October I was thinking nightly about what would make a great shot and would look fantastic on a debit card.  I wanted to do something universal, attractive to a general population, and definitely something that stood out from the crowd.  I was allowed five entries of my own, which gave me a bit of elbow room.

Knowing that my deadline was fast approaching, I finally set out to gather my images together. My final five were drawn from a combination of some images I had already recently taken, and some I had set out to create especially for the contest. I have my five selections below, displayed as a card:

I was SO sure I'd have at least one of those turn out to be a shoe-in for one of the five winning entries.  I put the images onto a CD that I took to work with me on Friday the 30th.  I called the man whose name was on the bottom of the contest rule sheet, asking if I mailed them that day whether or not they would arrive in time.  He said I'd better email them that night to be sure I got them in by the submission deadline. So when I got home from work that night, that's exactly what I did.

The following week I attended a training course at the Zions Learning and Development Center.  On breaks during the course or during lunchtime, we were able to browse the limited company internet.  While I was checking my work email, it dawned on me to ask the other employees about when the cards were going to be available for voting.  Then the bad news hit me ...

Apparently, the "submission deadline" was also the close of the very contest! Panic came over me as I realized what that meant.  No winning design.  No clients with my picture on their card.  No prize money. I naturally wrote and inquired about the lack of detailed information pertaining to the submission deadline, and its unnatural double role as the contest closure (this letter was also directed to the same man who had told me that I would be just fine if I emailed the entries on Friday night).  My answer was simply an apology coupled with, "Thank you for your feedback.  It was a first attempt at such a contest and I definitely have some take-aways from it."

It begins ...

Hi y'all. Though I've been in business since the spring of last year, I'm just getting around to having a BLOG so you're able to get to know me a little bit.

If you've come here from www.cjrphotography.net, thank you for your desire in having me serve as your photographer. If you've simply wandered in from cyberspace, welcome! I hope you make your way to my website and take an interest in my services.

I am currently based out of Salt Lake City, UT. I have a great eye for pictures, and a fun, dynamic personality.  Photography has been a hobby for me since I was in high school - I love to find a new way to see something.  I take pride in my talents and familiarity with photography's rules of thumb, while recognizing that sometimes you should blatantly break the rules in half to make the great shot.

Even now, after having turned my hobby into a profitable business, I still love to take lots of shots on my own.  Many of the future posts on this blog will be of my own photographic adventures.  To see the bulk of my professional work and some of my favorite pictures from my clients' photo shoots, you can either visit the website or the facebook group, Cameron J Reynolds' PHOTOGRAPHY.