The Blenders
Posted by Craig | Filed under photography
Last year I was lucky enough to do a shoot with The Blenders. I’ve worked with Allan in the past on the Sally J CD project and he gave me a call to work with his group. They wanted something that felt like a live shot, but had enough detail to print on posters and banners, which is something they haven’t been able to do with actual live photos, not to mention trying to get everyone to have a good pose.
We rented a theater for the day and worked with the house lighting mixed with strobes to emulate a live look. After spending time shooting all four of the guys together, it was clear that nailing the perfect “live” moment was going to be tough. We decided to shoot them all individually in lots of different poses that felt right for each of their personalities. Later, the selects were composited together into something that turned out really well.
Aside from being excited about the final image and how it looks in the CD packaging, it was pretty fun to see the posters around Minneapolis and up in the Pantages Theater at the merchandise table during their performances.
Ila Handbags
Posted by Craig | Filed under photography, products, studio
A few months ago I had the privilege of shooting in the studio all day for Ila Handbags, a Minneapolis company whose products are all handmade, using new and vintage fabrics.
This weekend we’re doing another shoot and I remembered that I never blogged any of the photos from the last one, so here they are!
More photos and some behind the scenes shots after the jump.
Tags: handbags, ila, minneapolis, product photography, studio
The Color Purple – Headshot session
Posted by Craig | Filed under headshots, photography
I had the pleasure of doing headshots for Traci when she was in Minneapolis on a break from her show. She’s currently touring with The Color Purple and having a great time.
We did some simple shots in the studio, which is how I usually like to start. It helps us select the right wardrobe and lets us get comfortable on our respective sides of the camera. After picking out a couple of shirts that would work, we found some great natural light and got started.
For photographers:
When shooting natural light headshots, I almost always use a reflector to fill in shadows and put some black foam core on the floor to cut the glare, which can throw off the color balance on the skin.
Here’s the setup for these shots:
Camera, lens and settings:
Canon 5D MkII, 85mm, ISO 320, 1/200 sec., f/3.5
Tags: actress, headshot, headshots, minneapolis
Theater Rehearsal Photo Project
Posted by Craig | Filed under photography, theater
Over the past month I had the honor of being invited in to document the rehearsals of several Minneapolis theater companies. The goal was to produce a photo gallery showing the often unseen rehearsal process for Minnesota Playlist, an online performing arts magazine.
Below are a few photos, but you can check them all out here. You might even see a photo of yours truly at the bottom of the page.
Thanks to everyone who welcomed me in and gave unrestricted access to what is usually a fairly private process.
All photos copyright Craig VanDerSchaegen 2008.
Tags: minneapolis, Minnesota Playlist, rehearsal, theater, theatre