The Perfect Preview: Amber & Kris : Wedding

October 17, 2010 - Wild Turkey Ranch

Reflecting back to 2009.

So, It's 7 days until the Sauls/Ingram wedding.  I am excited and nervous.  This is not the first wedding I have shot, but it is my hurdle.  After completing this session, I will have overcome my first big step.  I have been taking pictures forever... by my transformation that has taken place in the past year has brought me to realize several things.  One, I do it because I love it... I truly am at home behind the camera, no matter what camera it is or how much it cost.  Two, after reading thousands of words about photography, I know that I still have a lot to learn, but am confident in my personal skill.  Also, I have realized that it's okay that everyone has a love for photography, and it's okay that professionals want to write articles about how it's not okay.  Everyone has gifts.  It's how you use it and what you do with it...and how you transform it.  Yes, God gave me a passion, joy, love for this media.  Ok?  So what am I going to do about it?  Am I going to assume that my first picture ever taken of a client is "IT"?  That's my gift?  No.  I am going to learn, adjust, advance, stumble, make mistakes, and adapt.  I am going to use my gift over and over and tweak it.  It's mine, and I am going to make it wonderful.

One of the things that I did not have a year ago was great confidence.  I glided by on compliments, and how much I love it.  I have adjusted myself to know how good my work is.  Since last October, I have sold work, put it in auctions, made a FB fan page (and accumulated fans!), gotten clients that I did not know, purchased a high dollar camera, and focused my love into making my gift better.  I bought editing software.  I have put in time and sweat and effort.  I even struggled to create the perfect, fair, price list.  I am about to launch a website. 

I'm on my way.  When people say, "Oh, I didn't know you were a photographer," my answer is often, "I'm trying to be!"  It doesn't sound great writing about it, but what I mean is... I am in that beginning stage that EVERY professional has to be in.  The realization of your gift and realizing what you're going to do with it.  I'm gaining pride.

So, thank you.  Thanks to everyone who has supported me in the past year of my journey.  I am expecting your continued support.  You all are great.

Cannonsburg, October 2009

These are two of my favorite pictures from one of my very first sessions, taken about a year ago.  Before the Nikon, and with no post production.  I am proud of this work, but more proud that I can reflect on this session and see where I have improved.

9.22.10 - Happy Fall...sort of!

These are just a few pictures from my walk today.  I will post more when I can get all of my software companions to agree with me.

I love autumn.  Pumpkins, leaves, cool air, the colors, the smells, the fashion (Hello, boots and sweaters!)  We are having a strange autumn here in middle Tennessee.  It was 94 degrees today.  Not how I thought I would be celebrating the "first day of fall".  It's time to start ordering Pumpkin Spice lattes, not Passion Iced Tea!

The leaves...are starting to change.  I'll give it a few weeks, then hopefully my fall photo sessions will look like fall!  Anyways, here are some indications it's starting to become autumn around here.

9.15.10 -Melting my heart, giving me the fever.

I found these shots of my husband with our friends' children while going through a recent event I photographed.  They make me smile...and make me want having kids even more!  He's a natural!

 

Look at him with Baby Gabe!  Ahh!  Makes me smile.  I just wanted to share these. :-)

9.11.10 - Honoring 9/11

8.14.10 - Ferris Wheel & Fun Photo Aps

I downloaded a fun photo app on my new Android X during my road trip to St. Louis.  I enjoyed playing around with it, it pretty much takes care of any layers and fancy editing one may want to add to their photos.  I loved it!  It brought me so much joy, hehe!  Here are some of my favorites of my favorite ride at Six Flags.

8.27.10 - Behind the Scenes: Oasis Church SHE-Net Fashion Show, Nashville, TN

If I could fit more into the title without it being more of a mouthful, I also would have included that in this post, I experimented with no flash in a low lighting area, and since I only got one chance at these photos, and there was no staging, I had to accept what I got.  For the most part, I was very pleased!  Also, black and white. It worked so well here.

Both campuses of my church meet once a quarter for an event for only women, hosted by our leader, Pastor Jill.  It's always something fun: Wii Olympics, a Q&A panel...but this time.  It was a fashion show!  So when us Boro Babes (lovingly named by PJ) were asked to not only attend but participate, we piled into our vehicles and came down.  Five of us were models for the show, so we got to experience what being in a show was like, down to trying on clothes, choosing the right look, and doing our make-up.  The shots I am about to share of 5 of us crammed in front of the tiny vanity getting ready.  It was awesome.

Now, as you can see, there are some imperfections in most of them, again, one shot, really low lighting, low of time, but I actually loved how they all turned out.  Photo #1, I used flash, and since I hate flash photography, ESPECIALLY in dark places, I suppose this one came out all right, all things considered.  Her hair is a bit blown out, but I'll know next time.  Photo #2, didn't quite get the shot I wanted here, although she is still stunning.  I was hoping for a bit more of the compact... Photos #3-4 came out great, love the composition, and the dark lighting on both.  Photo #5...Now that's my gem!  I know that, as a photographer, you are supposed to stay out of the photo, and do angled shots with mirrors, however, I love the camera in this shot.  I love the lighting, I love the focus, I love the subject.  Get ready, Brides, this could be you! (I'll take myself out of yours, haha).  I love it's "technical imperfections".  Thank you, Mrs. Ayers, you are beautiful.  And Photo #6 - Ok, seriously?  The light where here eye silhouettes?  When I finally saw the images, I was shocked and how lucky I was for this.  It's magic.  And the reflection of the girls getting ready in the mirror?! LOVE!

Thanks, my friends, this was more than I could have asked for!

7.8.10 - Mt. Washington, NH

This year I have had the pleasure of doing and seeing things I have never done or seen before.  One of those things was driving halfway up the famous Mount Washington, NH.  It's where the Man in the Mountain is, or was... his nose broke off several years ago.  Tragic.

While on vacation in Maine, we drove down to North Conway to travel the Mt. Washington auto road.  We reached the half way point, right before it turned into a gravel, one-car-width nightmare.

I wanted to share a couple images from this experience, and these few of course, are of clouds.  One of the things I take away from my trip is how high in elevation we were.  To look out and see clouds eye level was breathtaking.  (I hear at the top, you are in them, crazy!)  Also, it was so lush here.  I've living in the south for 14 years now, and yes, it's green, but it's not green like it is Northeast.  Maybe because it's so hot, and I don't associate heat with lush vegetation.  (heat=warm colors, cold=cool colors?)

Yes, to the right there is a cloud that was hugging this side of the mountain.  It was like steam rising from the ground.  Anyways, it was a fun time.  I have roughly 200 photos from this, and no idea what to do with them all.  I just couldn't stop shooting, it was a sight I may never see again, or at least not for a long time.

7.9.10 - Behind the Scenes: Heidi & Charlie: Ogunquit, ME

Welcome to my first "Behind the Scenes with Krystal Sargent" blog post!  Here I will give insight, record memories, and include extra images from that day's session.

Today's post is from my mini session with Heidi and Charlie while I was vacationing in Oqunquit, Maine this summer.  I really enjoyed this session because it was with people I love, at a place I love.  My affection for this state isn't a secret...I love Maine almost as much as Florida... I summered in Maine as a little girl, and still go to the same places and beaches as I did then... (This is formulating into a future post, I think...)

Interestingly enough, our original plan wasn't to be on the Marginal Way.  We were planning on doing our session on the beach.  However, our experience early in the day showed us that we would have to find another spot.  This is a picture of what the wind was able to accomplish in just a matter of an hour.  I knew that trying to have a successful shoot with the wind and sand like this would prove to be a challenge.  Not that I'm not up for one, but with so many great back-up locations, it wouldn't be necessary.  And so it was decided we would walk the Marginal Way to dinner, and would have our session there.

What a  w o n d e r f u l second choice.  I loved every minute of being out there.  I was blessed by the scenery and the plethora of places for poses.  Every other step was another beautiful view of the ocean.  The colors were amazing.  I'm so glad that I got the opportunity to do a session here.

This is a view of Ogunquit Beach (and beyond) from near the middle of the Marginal Way.  This tiny lighthouse adds some character to the walkway, and was a tourist favorite.

This is a peak at some our pictures together.  I absolutely love my cousin, so much.  She is beautiful, smart and compassionate.  I enjoyed my time with her.  Growing up, there were lots of pictures taken of us together, but as we got older, there were fewer and fewer.  The pictures we got on this day hold a special place in my heart and I will treasure forever.

Ah, the three loves of my life, Scott, the beach, and photography.  When they meet, all is well in the world.  I love this picture for a few reasons.  One, my husband is a hottie, just look at him!  Two, look how freakin' blue that water is!  Serious!  Now, I love Florida, but this is killer.  Killer.  Three, the land in the horizon is a part of me...a part of my past.  That stretch of beach includes the beaches I grew up on, and parts of the North that I am familiar with.  And you know what's cool?  This trip was the first time he got to see all of that.  So this picture is sort of like my postcard of Scott's first summer trip to Maine.  How about that.

This is one of my favorites of the day.  The composition of this photo elates me.  I could star at it for hours.  Some people (including myself, sometimes) could star at wedding photography all day.  I could look at this.  All day.  I love catching him when he is doing his own thing.  He amazes me sometimes.  I like how he isn't the first thing your eye goes to, he's just there, being himself.  Just adding to my photo.  Gray, green, blue.  Gosh, I love Maine.

New England coastal towns rock my socks off.  And so does that sailboat.

And what a man after my own heart.  So, I am that girl that not only takes people's pictures for them when they ask, no, I walk up to people and ask them if they need/want their photo taken.  I've always been that way.  "Heck, if I take their picture, I bet they'll take mine!" That's my mantra while on vacation with my husband and there's no convenient way to place my camera on a timer.  There's times when you just gotta get that stranger to snap one for you.  I caught this action going on while we were getting ready to move down the Way.  How great is he.  Taking their picture.

And finally, behind the scenes with Krystal Sargent...

Wind, check.  This is me, mocking myself.  Telling people where to go and what to do is part of a photographer's job.  I just have that nice, off the cuff personality that makes it seem like I'm telling them what to do, when really, I just expect them to know:  I want to play around with where they are, what they are doing, what's behind them... I like to see what I can do with the naturalness of what they are doing first, before I have to move them.  It's funny, people often stand in front of my lens with this really blank look on their face, like... okay, now what?  What I really want is for them to be natural, and look good doing it.  Feel natural in your own skin, it will make for a better memory later.  That's my tip for today!

Hope you have enjoyed the first Behind the Scenes with Krystal Sargent. :-)

6.20.10 - Bringing Forth the Cloud Obsession...

I briefly mentioned that I love clouds.  The biggest reason being that they are so unpredictable.  And ever changing.  And just plain cool.  Plus, I love the contrasts between clouds and sky colors.  As much as I enjoy event/portrait photography, I love turning what I see into art.  So that's why I truly love nature photography.

I picked a few from Father's Day to share with you today.

The weather was beautiful in Nashville this day, so there were not many clouds, but the ones that did materialize were very fluffy and dispersed.  I love this shot with the moon.  And the sky was just so blue!

Adding a treeline frame here, gorgeous.  I know this may seem funny to some, maybe you appreciate art in different ways, but gosh!  Clouds are like watercolors, you just don't know how they will turn out.

Thank you, birds who flew in the center of my picture, you are awesome!  And thanks to the power lines, adding some angles into an otherwise soft picture.  I really feel peaceful with sky shots.  Instead of me telling a person how to sit or how to look, creating my shot, clouds do their own thing.  I just have to take what I can get from them.  It's nice.

6.18.10 - My Happy Birthday Sunset

Wanted to share this photo I took on my way to Nashville to celebrate my birthday.  

In "blog time" (ie non-chronological order start) this introduces you to my love (obsession?) for the sky and clouds.  This will be brought up again and again.  I am loving the colors here...even though nature didn't exactly make them.  Not to be confused, this photo is not retouched, but a lover of clouds knows that there are many things, including pollution and conflicting not natural light, that can create these beautiful colors.  This is not a science lesson, Google it.

Happy Birthday to Me!

6.16.10 - Loving my waterproof camera...

As a photographer, and lover of pictures... I like anything that will allow me to take a picture in any circumstance (such as camera phones, but more about those in the future).  What I am talking about this time are waterproof cameras!  Now, my waterproof camera is not a 5 star camera by any means, but still something to splash about. (Haha!)  It's a simple Vupoint 5 megapixel, and I will be the first to say it's quality is not the best, but not so bad a little Photoshop won't fix.

Last July, my husband and I took our waterproof camera to Florida, and did not get happy results.  Notice the awkward faces... (Want to say thanks to my pals/husband for a wonderful weekend...and for letting me post this wonderful picture, hah)  This June, we broke it out again, determined to solved the case of the swervy faces.  Turns out exceptional camera batteries (Energizer Lithium) fixed the distortion. 


Here are a few pics I snapped this June with my Vupoint.  I was actually really impressed with the decent (term used lightly here, folks, these pics are retouched) quality.

How fun to take pictures in places with water.  This camera comes in an airtight container that sorta floats.  Now, I wouldn't take my Nikon to a casual afternoon at the pool, but I'd take my little Vupoint!

5.30.10 - Pulling out the Zoom Lens

So, when I purchased my camera back in December, the bundle I bought came with an 18mm-55mm lens in addition to the regular lens.  I had played with it briefly, but hadn't actually switched it over for a long period of time.  I found the perfect opportunity to do so at a Nashville Sounds game over Memorial Day weekend.  We were sitting in the second row, and were very close to the players, the field, but when I got that zoom out...wow.

I really enjoyed getting shots that I wanted to get.  Shots that were not tainted by people's heads, objects that stood between the target and myself.  It was the first time I saw the advantage of having another viewpoint.  I mean, com on, how many of us just move closer to our object.  It takes only a second, and it works just fine.  But what about those moments where you can't step any closer.  It was great.

It reminds me of when I was a sportswriter for my high school newspaper.  I always wished I had the picture that was in my mind of the game I attended to go along with my story.  Hey, Nashville Sounds, call me :-)

Launching the Blog

Hello friends.  This is the inaugural post of the Krystal Sargent Photography blog.  Here you will find Behind the Scenes content, experience journals, extra photos and all around blog posts pertaining to anything! 

The first several posts will not follow any chronological order, as I plan on back-posting about some sessions I have had, but after all of that follows through, I plan on keeping an updated, current timeline.  Please bear with me as I get everything going!

So please follow me, bookmark me, it should be a fun ride!  This site is intended to compliment my current photography Facebook page, and coming soon... my webpage!

www.facebook.com/krystalsargentphotography