I love bridal fashion shoots. I get especially excited when I have a bride who wants to do a bridal fashion shoot and who trusts me in the creative process to produce the shoot. For me, there is nothing more exhilarating than working with a client, hearing their ideas and desires, and putting a unique spin on them to take them over the top.

A couple weeks ago, we had the opportunity to do a bridal fashion shoot with one of our July 2011 brides, Cambrey Little. In talking about her bridal shoot, she wanted something fashion-forward and chic. After shooting her wedding and seeing her gorgeous dress, I knew that this shoot would require a special location, some dramatic lighting, and something over the top to truly make her images pop.

Team NPG quickly put it into high gear looking for a the perfect “swanky” location that would suit the ideas I had percolating. After searching for a week or so, we secured permission to shoot in the Conservatory Bar at Gaylord Opryland.

“It was the perfect combination of modern style, clean lines, and a neutral color palate that would allow for strategic use of bold color to bring flare to the image.”

Once we had the location secure, I went to work looking for some sort of prop that would be interesting in a fashion style shoot. Fashion is often about including things that otherwise do not seem natural in the composition of a shot. Being that we were shooting a bridal fashion piece, a bouquet seemed like an explorable idea, but it needed to be something other than flowers.  I ended up creating an over the top feather bouquet that we could integrate as a prop into the shoot that would bring some texture, additional contrast, and a splash of color to the shoot. It was honestly one of those ideas that I knew would either go over really well or be a complete failure. Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut and stick your neck out on the line for an idea. I did. It paid off.

For lighting of this shoot, I knew it needed to be dramatic. We chose a standard key light, hair light, reflector setup with a strong contrast ratio against the background to create depth.

And like that, we had the elements for a great shoot and ended up having a great time shooting on location at Opryland. Thanks Cambrey!
- Caleb

About 6 weeks ago, Caleb had the amazing opportunity to travel with Adventist Health International to Valle de Angeles on a humanitarian photography project. Today, we are excited to be posting a collection of the images from the project.

You can read more about the project and view a sample of the images here.

You can also watch this video, entitled “Poderoso”, which translated is “Powerful”. It is a quick photo slideshow AHI used for recruitment purposes for a trip coming up in november.

Caleb experienced the powerful hand of God at work in and through the lives of the Honduran people, and those who were giving of their lives, time, and talent to serve the people of Valle de Angeles.

AHI Honduras : Valle de Angeles from Caleb Magnino on Vimeo.

Here I am in the airport en route to Haiti to shoot a photo project for Woodlands Church. My flight is the wonderful 6AM flight out which puts my wake time at 3:30AM. Let’s just say that this night owl is not much of a 3:30AM early riser.

A couple weeks ago, I posted my pack list for my photo project in Honduras. After many expressed thanks for the post, I thought I would again post what I chose to pack for this specific project.

For this project specifically, I packed a bit on the heavier side mostly due to 2 factors: one, I am not quite sure where I am shooting, and two, that the various locations and conditions will most assuredly be quite different than the others. So, in an attempt to be prepared, I decided to pack a bit more for this trip.

Here’s what is in the bag:

Cameras

Canon 5D Mark II – This is my main “go-to” camera. Dependable. Quick. Easy. Full frame so all lenses look great. Can shoot in low light with ISO 6400 or higher with little noise.
Canon 40D – Good second camera. 1.6x frame so it is almost like a multiplier for all lenses. I usually keep the Canon 70-200mm F2.8L on this camera so really it gives me a 320mm lens slung over my shoulder.

Lenses

Canon 24-70mm F2.8L – This is my “go-to” lens. If I can only pull one lens out of the bag, this will be it. It is quick and shoots well in low light. The focal length is incredibly useful for most applications.
Canon 35mm F1.4L – The typical 35mm photojournalism lens. Shoots INCREDIBLY well in low light. The bokeh of this lens is remarkable.
Canon 17-40mm F4.0L – I carry this lens as an option for a wide-angle lens. Though not much wider than the 24-70mm F2.8L, it is a great option for that wide angle look on the full frame camera. Put on the 40D, it becomes a 27-64mm lens on my second camera when I may be carrying a prime lens on the 5D and still need a versatile short lens on camera 2.
Canon 70-200mm F2.8L – Another staple lens. This lens is usually always on camera 2 slung over my shoulder. On these humanitarian / photojournalism projects, I may only have a split second to grab a shot. I don’t get a second chance. Moments are fleeting. Many of my favorite, and most compelling, shots have been taken from afar with this lens.

Lighting

Besco 90watt LED lights – x2 – LED lighting is small, yet very effective. I packed these to help illuminate incredibly dark areas, or for higher contrast shots in which I need significant fill light.
Canon 580EXII – Old faithful. Flash that I use off camera for fill light that is a work horse, especially when coupled with external battery pack I brought along with it which provides longer battery life and faster recycle rate.Pocket Wizard Plus II – x2 – Off camera lighting control.

Miscellaneous

Rapidstraps – Must have for me on both cameras. Allow me comfort when slinging 2 cameras all the while needing the peace of mind to know that I can literally let go of one camera and drop it to grab the next and KNOWING that my strap will grab and hold the camera.
Manfrotto Carbon Fiber Tripod – Pretty self explanatory. Lightweight. Sturdy. Necessary.
Manfrotto ultra compact light aluminum light stand – incredibly compact and very versatile light stand
4 batteries for each camera – Never know when you will get a good charge.
Hoya Super UV filters on all lenses – great protection against all sorts of dirt, grime, and gunk that can end up on your lenses
Hoya Super Circular Polarizer – must have for bright skies and water
Graduated Neutral density filter – in circumstances with bright light, i.e. intense daylight, helps to calm down light and reduce contrast ratios
60″ multi surface circular reflector – simple fill lighting solution
Lens Cleaner / Tissue / Q-tips – I clean my cameras and lenses daily at the end of a day of shooting.
Antibacterial wipes / Hand Sanitizer – When in third world with many infectious diseases, this is a must.

Last sunday, my first sunday home in over 4 weeks, marked the end of a series at Rolling Hills Community Church here in Franklin, TN. The series was entitled “The Story” and was basically a look at the Bible, history, and our current lives today being this epic story of Creation and a Creator. The idea is that we can look at scripture and see representative examples of the very same things we face in our lives in present day, specifically the need for second chances, the existence of doubt, and the necessity of hope.

I have been leaning in and working alongside the other creatives at RHCC over the course of this series, specifically in the production of the video elements that were customized for each week. It has been a fun project, though quite challenging at times.

For example, the very first piece to be filmed was the trailer for the series. We were up against a deadline, and I, after loosing another creative to some unforeseen circumstances, soon found myself as the producer, actor, camera operator, and anything or everything else I needed on that specific day. So, with the deck stacked against me, I was able to produce this for that sunday’s trailer:

The Story : Trailer from Caleb Magnino on Vimeo.

Considering the circumstances, I was quite pleased. You can view the additional pieces of “The Story” Project on Vimeo.

I could have easily been discouraged and looked for an easy, but probably acceptable, compromise. I thought about it. But, in the beauty of the moment, I made a decision to give it all I had. I had to rise to the challenge, rethink how I was going to produce the final product, and simply execute to the best of my ability. I can say that I learned a lot because I was put in circumstances that were far outside of my “norm”. The next time you face adverse circumstances in your art, see them as an opportunity to excel, or to “paint outside the lines” so to speak. You may just find new skill sets waiting to be discovered!

I came to Honduras as a photographer who was purposed to take photos that would raise awareness about what this mission hospital is doing in this community. That was why I was asked to join this team. That was, and is, my job.

What I love about these projects is that, quite often, I am challenged to remember the bigger reason why I am here, and that is to simply serve people and love them. It is that simple. Sometimes it is playing with fatherless children. Others, it has been stopping for a moment just to smile and shake a hand; smiles are universal with no need for translation. The whole purpose is to love people as Christ would love them.

When I hit the ground today at a clinic the hospital was hosting at a small village 30 minutes outside of the Valley of the Angels, I found myself having to lay down my camera and step into a place of being a medical assistant. We got to the site and soon found ourselves, with our small team of 5, swarmed with people coming in bringing their children to see us. The doctor and the student doctor were swamped. Sign in tables were full of people claiming various ailments. The team was bogged down so the doctor looked at me and asked, “do you know how to take blood pressure?”

Nope. But the doctor simply looked at me and said, “you ready to learn?”. The next thing I knew, I had a stethoscope around my neck and a blood pressure cuff in my hand. The need was so great. I was an able and willing person who could fill it. Photography became second for a few hours to simply jumping in and serving.

I loved it.

There was a split second that I feared that I was missing “the shot”, but that shallow thinking gave way to the realization that the very best thing I could do at that moment, was simply to serve and fill the great need that was immediately before us.

By no means did that mean that I did not shoot today, because I did. It just meant that for a couple hours, I just needed to step outside of my “responsibility” and be a part of filling a need. It was exciting.

So, my challenge to you is this: be aware of the needs around you daily and take time to hit the pause button on all your “responsibilities” and choose to meet the needs of those around you. You may never know how much of an impact you could have in the moment.

I am sitting in the airport terminal on my way to Honduras to shoot for an international healthcare missions organization. It’s early. I’m tired. I’m not sure that I packed everything I personally needed, but I do know that my camera bag is packed with the appropriate arsenal for this project.

On many of my trips, folks have asked me what I have in my bag for a project like this. So, here is the manifest for this project in Honduras:

Cameras: Canon 5dMKii / Canon 40D

Lenses: Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L , Canon 17-40mm f/4L , Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L, Canon 50mm f/1.4

Filters : UV Filters for all lenses, Neutral Density filter, Circular Polarizer

Lighting : 1 Bescor 70 Watt High Intensity LED light, Canon 580exII Flash, Pocket Wizard PlusII (2x)

Extras: Manfrotto Carbon Fiber Tripod, Monopod, multiple battery chargers / extra batteries, AA battery trays for both LP-E6 and BP-511 battery grips, 2 x Rapidstrap camera slings/straps, lens pen and cleaning solution, q-tips, hand sanitizer, anti-bacterial wipes, Firewire 800 CF card reader and more CF cards than possibly needed.

Bag: Lowepro Photo Trekker AWII

Laptop : MacBook Pro

That’s my arsenal for this. See you all soon! Hoping to post images soon.