Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“Every bride is beautiful. It’s like newborn babies or puppies. They can’t help it.”
―
I once wrote a post entitled “I Wanted To Write A Post About Wedding Photography” where I talked about how a few years ago, my then-accountant suggested I start shooting weddings again because “people pay crazy money for wedding photography.” While that statement may be true for some photographers, it hasn’t been my experience, which brings me to…
In my photographic lifetime I must have photographed hundreds of brides. More than a few of the formal portraits I made of them were in a traditional church setting, much as how my own mother’s wedding photographs was made before WWII. Somewhere around the late 1970’s all that changed when the legendary Rocky Gunn started creating outdoor bridal images and the wedding photography world hasn’t been the same since.
How I Made this Portrait
I photographed Kellie outdoors on the grounds of the First Presbyterian Church in Brighton, Colorado. The camera used was an 8.2-megapixe Canon EOS 20D with an EF 85mm f/1.8 lens that I think is perfect for portrait photography. Fill light was provided by a Canon 420EX speedlite with a Sto-fen Omni Bounce diffuser in place. The exposure was 1/160 sec at f/4.5 and ISO 200 with a minus two-thirds stop exposure compensation. Flash sync for the EOS 20D is 1/250 sec, which is helpful in these kind of bright outdoor settings.
Outdoor bridal portraits like this one are more of an environmental challenge than photography in a church or studio. Things you may have to contend with include wind that’s not great for veils, rapidly changing lighting conditions and sometimes insects. Along with that wind comes blowing dust, dirt and maybe my own clumsiness of smudging the lens or a filter that’s protecting it. That’s when it’s time for a LensPen
Time for a LensPen
You can use a LensPen on all kinds of optical lenses, LCD and glass surfaces making it perfect for cleaning camera lenses, binocular lenses and telescope eyepieces. A LensPen Black Series measures 4.33-inches (11cm) long and has a round cleaning tip measuring slightly less than one-half-inch (12mm) in diameter that’s slightly concave to match a lens’s slightly convex shape. As I mentioned in a previous post. a LensPen has longevity too; You’ll be able to clean a dirty lens for about 500 times!
A LensPen slips into a pocket and is easy to use. Here’s how to do it:
- Start by using the retractable brush to lightly remove any dust from your lens.
- To clean the lens, twist off the cap and move the cleaning tip in circular motions around the front element. If any smudges remain, gently breath on the lens and repeat.
- LensPens are designed to be used with dry, optical glass surfaces; Do not use on wet or plastic lenses.
Best of all a LensPen Black Series only costs $12.95, so you can afford to put one in each of your camera bags. With outdoor portrait photography time right around the corner. a brand-new LensPen makes a perfect companion for yourself or your favorite photographer!
LensPen is a long-time sponsor of my sites but I was using their products long before I even had a blog. My wife bought my first LensPen for me in 1994 after I acquired a brand-new Nikon N90s SLR! I would like to thank LensPen for their continued support.