Posts Tagged ‘studio’

2015 Cupid Competition

Dancers at Arthur Murray Tysons during the 2015 Cupid Competition ©TimeLine Media
Dancers at Arthur Murray Tysons during the 2015 Cupid Competition ©TimeLine Media

Arthur Murray

For Valentine’s Day, the Arthur Murray in Tysons held a 2015 Cupid Competition at their studio. Not all of the competitions that we cover are large, multi-studio, regional spanning events. Some are local studio events that give studios an opportunity to give the taste of these kinds of events in their own venue.

Dance Studio in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media
Dance Studio in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media
Professional - Amateur dancers in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media
Professional – Amateur dancers in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media

Carlos Hernandez, the manager of the Tysons location, had us come out to cover the event. With help from some photographer friends, we got both stills and video of the competition. They had Leonard Theiss come to judge the dancers so they could have some feedback on their dancing to review with their teachers later.

Professional - Amateur dancers in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media
Professional – Amateur dancers in Tysons, VA during a competition ©TimeLine Media
Steve and Leonard Theiss at Arthur Murray, Tysons ©TimeLine Media
Steve and Leonard Theiss at Arthur Murray, Tysons ©TimeLine Media

The staff at the Tysons studio was sure to make everyone feel welcome. They had a few more people in the studio than their regular week nights, so there was a nice energy there for the dancers. I enjoyed making photos of the students dancing with their instructors. I also enjoyed getting photos of the staff performing a professional show to end the evening. It was a nice progress check for dancers in the studio, and it gave them a chance to see what is possible for their dancing by watching their studio mates show off what they have been working on. I am sure that this experience will spur more people to prepare for and dance at their next Freestyles or Showcase event.

Cupid Competition at Arthur Murray - Tysons, VA ©TimeLine Media
Cupid Competition at Arthur Murray – Tysons, VA ©TimeLine Media
Studio staff and students at the Arthur Murray - Tysons, VA ©TimeLine Media
Studio staff and students at the Arthur Murray – Tysons, VA ©TimeLine Media

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2015 Corporate Staff Portraits

Executive Business Portraits - Tysons Corner Center
2015 Corporate Staff Portraits – Tysons Corner Center

Tysons, Virginia

At the beginning of the new year, updating staff portraits is a popular assignment for me. Maybe getting a new headshot is a popular New Year’s resolution? The feeling of renewal extends to websites as well. I see lots of updates to my frequent stopping points online.

Executive Business Portraits - Tysons Corner Center
2015 Corporate Staff Portraits – Tysons Corner Center

These headshots were made in a conference room. I brought a mobile lighting setup with a white cloth backdrop. One flash through a shoot – through umbrella was the main light, and another light was placed on camera right to light the background with a little kick to the side of the face.

Staff Group Photos

CBRE staff photo on the Plaza ice rink at Tysons Corner Center
CBRE staff photo on the Plaza ice rink at Tysons Corner Center

This staff photo was a little nerve wracking for me. Not for anything having to do with me or my position for the photo, but for my subjects! The ice rink on the Plaza at Tysons Corner Center was the setting for this updated staff photo for CBRE. They were also the sponsor for the Zamboni machine that keeps this ice smooth. So the idea was to have the Zamboni out in the middle of the rink to provide the branding for the company as well as a focal point for the staff to pose for the photo. Because it was outside, I wanted to make the colors and faces pop from the background, so I set up one large 500 W/S flash to camera left. I did not have any modifiers on the light to ensure I got the most power out of the light that I could. I set it to ¾ power and I made a few frames.

CBRE staff photo on the Plaza ice rink at Tysons Corner Center
CBRE staff photo on the Plaza ice rink at Tysons Corner Center

I did not want to have them standing out there for too long since it was cold. Not to mention it was slippery since they were out on the ice! The staff of the ice rink did have some mats to help with the traction, but I still held my breath as they walked out there carefully. I only moved two people from their initial position to make a better composition, but I luckily, the results were great right out of the camera. Whew!

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703-864-8208

Headshots – Northern Virginia DC Photographer

Headshot photography - ©TimeLine Media

Spring is coming soon – hopefully! We had another bout with the snow yesterday, so I had plenty of time to edit photos inside. Every so often, it is good to update your headshots. I have plenty of different images that I use for avatars and profile photos. These are from many test shoots before my clients arrive. I use myself to test lights. Thus, I end up with lots of images to choose from in the collection. This day was no different – T. and I have been coordinating a shoot. Before she arrived, I setup the lights and the background. With the small space that I was working with, I decided to use the beauty dish for the main light on the subject. This modifies produces a very nice quality of light for faces, and there is a huge drop off from the subject keeping the light from illuminating the background cloth.

Home Studio Setup

Portrait lighting testing - ©TimeLine Media - headshots of blog author
Portrait lighting testing – ©TimeLine Media

Keeping the light off the background is important to separate your subject from the background. It works really well for portraits as it gives your subject some space in the photo. This is a piece of feedback I give to a lot of photographers when viewing their portfolios. When you are taking the time to pose a subject, and you are trying to find the best angle to place them for a photo, do not place them too close to a background element. This could include walls, plants, statues, or anything that is behind them. When you place your subjects there, you can get some strong shadows behind your subjects from a flash, and your background will be in sharp focus. I try to minimize both when making portraits – I want the subject to not have any competition from distractions in the background. If you need an updated headshot, contact me at 703-864-8208 or Rassi at timelinedc.com and we can discuss what I can produce for you!

Headshot photography - ©TimeLine Media - headshots example
Headshots photography – ©TimeLine Media

TimeLine Media – www.timelinedc.com
703-864-8208

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