Blog

The official photo blog of J. David Buerk Photography.

2014 Headshots

This Winter I've had several folks contact me for headshots.  Everyone has their own reason or purpose for headshots, but the art remains the same regardless.  I think it's a blast shooting one-on-one, turning up the dance music and bringing out the fun-loving model in even the most reserved individuals.

Here are couple shots from just the past month!

These first two were shot, of all places, in front of a grocery store on New Year's Eve - it just proves that a great photo can be taken anywhere there is an interesting background to provide some accentual yet non-distracting texture.

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I've also had a few people show interest in how I retouch portraits over the past few months, so I figured I'd share this time-lapse with you which shows you just that. I thought to start recording after I'd already completed color and toning work, so you don't get to see that portion (sorry!).

I'd like to eventually produce some video tutorials explaining some of my processes - I haven't done this just yet.

This is 50 minutes of retouching work, including skin, hair, and other details. If you watch, you actually see me spend 20 minutes reducing fine mist droplets from individual hairs - this photo was shot outdoors in foggy conditions, and we didn't realize mist was collecting in the model's hair until after we finished shooting... certainly not something I normally spend time retouching.

This video shows just some of the methods I use. I often use Frequency Separation for in-depth skin retouching, but I felt that would be way overkill in this case, thanks to a talented makeup artist.

In case you're interested in the setup for this image:
Canon EOS 1D X @ ISO 320, 1/320th
EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM @ f/1.2
Natural (overcast) lighting with model holding a 43" silver reflector at waist level.

Interestingly, I forgot to post this photo from several months ago to my blog - oops!  Even though this isn't from the past month, I've continued working with this realtor over the past few weeks, aiding in creation of promotional graphics.

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